Pretty Lady
by Kaoruhana
Summary: I met him in the cereal aisle of a grocery store as I tried to hide from Kouga and asked him to help me. It would have been a failed attempt if his daughter hadn't stated "You're pretty!" and distracted us enough for my idea to work.
1. Grocery Store

**This will be a story told in snippets of an evolving SessxKag relationship.  
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**Hope you enjoy!

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I looked around the grocery store trying to spot something to hide around until Kouga left. I had met him two weeks ago through my best friend Sango who wanted me to move on from my failed relationship. I was more than ready to do so, but Kouga was too forward and possessive for my tastes. He had seen me at the nearby coffee shop and wanted to talk to me, probably to see why I had been avoiding him, but I just wanted him to get the hint and leave me alone.

I turned the corner and skidded to a halt at the end of the cereals aisle. There was a man in front of me with silver hair- the kind only one other person I knew had. He stooped down and I saw that he was talking to a little girl; this assured me that it wasn't Inuyasha. I was about to turn around to leave the aisle when I heard Kouga's voice. Without thinking, I walked up to the man, and stood next to him.

"Hi, look can you hide me from the man who's going to walk into this aisle within the next few moments? I really don't want to talk to him." The man stared at me deciding to leave I suppose, when the girl's voice stopped his movements.

"You're pretty!" she exclaimed. Finding himself distracted, the man turned to his four year old daughter, or someone around that age I guessed. "Please help her daddy!" she asked in a voice that I knew was impossible to resist. With a sigh, he moved closer to me and I inwardly squealed as I helped them pick out cereals. I saw Kouga walk into the aisle and then walk out looking defeated. I really didn't want to do this to him, but how else was I supposed to get through to a dense guy? Why not make him think I was taken already?

"Thank you." I murmured as the two began leaving the aisle to get the other groceries on their list.

"Hn." The man acknowledged me while the girl waved bye. I moved away and made my way to the car. As I drove home I remembered the man and his daughter. Wondering if he had a wife, I suddenly realized what I looked like.

"Great!" I mumbled out loud as I parked my car. "Now he probably thinks I'm a slut!"

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**Haha, the first encounter. It only gets better from here I assure you! Review please!  
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**Kaoruhana ^_^  
**


	2. Second Meeting

**Thanks to all those who reviewed and like this story! I plan on updating it daily, so there should always be more to read. **

**"Second Meeting"

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I cursed the time as I drove down the street where Shippo's school was located. I was his big sister since my mother adopted him after finding him in front of the shrine one day. I cursed the time again realizing I was late picking him up by fifteen minutes. It wasn't my fault, I had a customer come in five minutes before I was supposed to leave and well I couldn't necessarily kick him out now could I? Seeing the school building, I slowed down and came to a stop in front of the school. I parked the car and got out, seeing Shippo waiting with a friend in the courtyard.

"Kagome!" He yelled, running forward to greet me. "You're late."

"Sorry about that little guy." I answered with a smile. "I had someone come in and I couldn't tell them to leave you know?" The boy nodded and then pulled my hand.

"Kagome, this is Rin." He announced as we approached the little girl. I recognized her as the same girl who I had seen in the grocery store the other day.

"Hi Rin." I answered with a smile, knowing full well I was a stranger to her and thus might not be acknowledged.

"Hi pretty lady! Did the guy get you?" she asked innocently. I smiled shaking my head.

"Nope! And it's all cause you and your father helped me. Thank you." I stated humoring her a bit. She smiled at me and then looked around me at someone, before sprinting towards the figure.

"Daddy!" Rin yelled as he picked her up. "Look, it's the pretty lady." I blushed as Shippo tugged at my hand obviously wanting to know what this was about. I ignored him opting to glance at the other male with a smile. He met me with a stoic mask and I decided then that the ground was more interesting.

"Shippo, why don't you say goodbye to Rin and then we'll go hang out?" I stated trying to alleviate the awkward atmosphere. My little brother nodded, running to his friend as I walked behind him and then led him to the car.

"Bye Pretty lady!" Rin sang as I walked away. I turned to her and waved bye back before getting in the car and driving home.

Great, now he probably confirmed his thoughts from the day before I decided: not only do I throw myself at men; he probably thinks Shippo's my kid too. I turned the radio on, hoping to distract my thoughts, glad when Shippo's babble and the music helped me tune them out.

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**Kagome really is a bit too critical of herself but you'll see why in the next bit. **

**Please review!  
Kaoruhana ^_^  
**


	3. Of Chocoholics and Articles

**Thanks for the reviews! Here's the next part...don't worry the next one has a little more SessxKag interaction and is a little longer.  


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**I took a bite out of my cake and sighed as the gooey bliss melted in my mouth. I was a chocoholic and proud of it too. Today was a relaxing day and so I'd come out to my favorite bakery, deciding to indulge a little as I wrote my weekly editorial for _Tokyo Women_ magazine. It wasn't a great side job- just something to make a little extra money by when the flower shop was closed during the weekend. I penned my thoughts down, deciding to make this week's article about the negative stereotypes faced by young women in society. It was more or less a reflection of what I perceived Rin's father took me as. While I decided not to mention him exactly in the article, I did want to mention the situations we were in. Taking another bite, I looked confidently at my computer screen and in two hours the article was done.

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**Review please :)  
Kaoruhana ^_^  
**


	4. Email

**Hi! This would have been up earlier if my internet connection hadn't dissapeared. Anyway here's #4: E-mail

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I stared at the computer screen. It had been two days since I had published my article and my eyes stayed glued to my monitor where Sesshomaru Taisho's e-mail was marked unread. The subject of the e-mail was "Review to Stereotypes Article." Gulping, I opened the message and read it.

_To Ms. Kagome Higurashi,_

_ This is in response to your article on the belief that I am a stereotypical egoist. I actually am not. I will admit however that I harbored those ill thoughts toward you, the same thoughts you mentioned in your article, but after taking a second look, I realized that you were different and that perhaps listing you in a specific category was unjust.  
I may have tolerated your actions before in the grocery store and at the elementary school but I _do not and will not tolerate_ you writing lies about me. If you wish to know me personally Ms. Higurashi, and denounce my true personality, kindly e-mail me back._

_Sincerely,  
Sesshomaru Taisho_

After reading the e-mail I was shocked until a thought ran through my head: Just why the hell was Sesshomaru Takahashi reading_ Tokyo Women _magazine?

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**Review please  
Kaoruhana ^_^**


	5. Coffee Shop

**Thanks to everyone following this story! Here's the next snippet!  


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**I sat nervously at the coffee shop sipping my drink. Maybe, I mused this had been a bad idea- after all and meeting Sesshomaru would just be an unwanted worry. I glanced at the watch on my wrist- five minutes till the supposed meeting time of four-thirty- if I made a break for it perhaps I could leave now? All hopes were dashed however as a tall man strode into my line of sight.

"Miss Higurashi?" he asked taking a seat across from me. I nodded my head in answer. "Thank you for meeting me here."

"No problem." I answered. "I hope you don't mind that I already ordered." He smiled.

"That's not a problem. I'm just here to talk."

"Okay," I took another sip of my mocha, "what did you want to talk about?"

"Tell me about yourself."

"Um well I'm twenty-three, work two jobs, have two younger brothers, and love to read."

"What do you do for a living?" he asked latching on.

"I'm a florist during the week and I write articles for _Tokyo Women_ magazine. Speaking of which why were you reading that?" I was dying to ask the question that had been plaguing my mind for a while.

"Being a single father I found that the magazine has helpful tips on how to raise children."

"Oh." I nervously tapped the side of the cup I had been drinking from. "Where do you work?"

"I am a lawyer at my father's firm."

"I see." Sesshomaru's unnerving stare was beginning to give me goose bumps.

"Are you single?" He asked suddenly. I sputtered opening and closing my mouth for a few moments before being able to answer.

"Yes." I clutched tightly onto my cup wondering where the conversation was going.

"So you would be willing to go out with me this Saturday?" I bit my lip before nodding.

"Sure."

"Great, I'll pick you up at your place?" I numbly gave him my address and phone number watching as he left as suddenly as he had come.

"Oh my god!" I whispered watching him leave, "I have a date with him!"

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**How was it?  
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**Please review!  
Kaoruhana ^_^**


	6. Disaster Date

**Hi, here's the next snippet! Enjoy!  


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Disaster Date

The supposed date was a disaster. I supposed it was my fault. Dinner was at a seafood restaurant and I being stupid forgot to inform the chef about my allergic reaction to crawfish. It was painful to be sent to the hospital before Sesshomaru had been able to even touch his dinner and I groaned feeling myself want to die. Sesshomaru was currently outside my room door talking with my mother and Shippo was sitting on my bed.

"How come I've never seen you like this before?" he asked.

"Because I'm careful." I muttered sulking. Shippo seemed unfazed by it I noticed and continued to probe me with questions.

"Are you spending the night here Kagome?"

"Yes." The doctors wanted to make sure I didn't relapse.

"But I wanted to watch cartoons with you!" he yelled knowing that my mother would have insisted I spend the night with her. The door opened and Sesshomaru walked in while my mother ushered Shipppo out with promises of a treat. Sesshomaru took a seat by my side where a chair was set up for guests. I wanted to both thank my mother for the privacy and suddenly wish Shippo back to save me from embarrassment.

"You okay?" Sesshomaru asked pushing bangs away from his face.

"Sorry." He seemed slightly confused as to why I would apologize before smiling and touching my right hand with his free one.

"It's okay Kagome. We can reschedule our date. What time would work for you?" I blushed feeling insignificant but at the same time happy that he was still willing to date me.

"Wednesday?" I asked meekly.

"That sounds good." He turned to leave but before opening the door turned to me again. "Get better soon then okay? I don't give a lot of second chances." He left and I stared at the door before his words sunk in. Did he just complement me?

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**So? Review please!  
**

**Thanks  
Kaoruhana ^_^  
**


	7. Second Attempt

**So here it is: The Second Attempt**

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The second attempt was much better than the first and I was so glad. We ate at a French place and Sesshomaru was a lot nicer to talk to than I had at first pinned him for. He had kissed me goodnight after dinner and I sighed remembering that moment from last night. That man sure knew how to kiss. As I moved to restock flowers, he walked in and I looked up with a smile.

"Hi." I greeted wondering what he was doing here and how he had managed to find my flower shop so easily- I hadn't mentioned its location the night before.

"Hello."

"Did you need something?" I asked moving away from the register inwardly cursing my lack of a "How do you do?"

"Yes. Tomorrow night you will watch a movie." I wasn't sure whether it was a demand or a request so I just said what I felt was right.

"Sure." He hesitated to say something and then sighed, letting it out.

"It's a Disney movie- Rin wants to see it. I know it's not perfect but I was thinking that we could talk over drinks afterwards when Rin goes to bed."

"That's fine too Sesshomaru." I let out a inward sigh, at how he was so sweet towards his daughter hoping that perhaps over time that sweetness would be seen towards me as well. But wait, didn't he just demand me! I had to talk with him about that first!

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**Please Review!  
Kaoruhana ^_^**


	8. So Worth It

**To C- thanks a lot for your review. I'm trying to keep your thoughts into consideration and I hope you see the results!**

**Here it is: So Worth It  


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**I relaxed on the sofa as I waited for Sesshomaru to come down. The movie wasn't bad and Rin was such an adorable little girl. It was hard not to love her. At the same time however, I was glad that she was now asleep and Sesshomaru could spend some time with me. I heard movement from the stairs and saw Sesshomaru make his way down.

"I'm glad you decided to join Rin and I." He stated approaching me. I nodded my assent as I patted the seat next to me. He took the invitation and put his arm around me pulling me a little closer to his side. I sighed leaning into him.

"So what do you want to do now?" Sesshomaru just held me by his side running his fingers up and down every now and then before answering the question.

"Kiss you." He said it so calm and so collected that I was taken aback at his sudden words. I backed away from his hold as he reluctantly let me go. While I didn't mind his kisses I wasn't sure of the implication of his words. I knew he had a daughter at home but she was currently asleep so anything could happen. He seemed to have understood my feelings since he hastily explained.

"It will go no further than what you wish for. I have no intentions of forcing you into anything." I relaxed after a few moments noting the sincerity in his words. Well, in that case-leaning forward, I pressed my lips onto his and sighed in bliss as he eagerly responded. Yes, this was so worth it.

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**Thanks for reading! Please review!**

**Kaoruhana ^_^  
**


	9. Dinner Invitation

**Here is the next chapter: Dinner Invitation Enjoy!  


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**"Kagome!" I turned to see Rin walking into the store with her father close behind. We had been dating for a little more than a month now and I had to say that I enjoyed being with Sesshomaru. He was the perfect gentleman. But one thing bothered me. Didn't he have a flaw? So far he was a little arrogant but I didn't count that as a personal flaw, I saw it more as a character development issue which I was happy Rin did not manage to inherit. I turned to Rin who had commanded my attention once again.

"Kagome, daddy was going to ask you to come eat dinner with us tomorrow!" Rin exclaimed jumping up and down with excitement. I smiled at her enthusiasm and looked back up at Sesshomaru.

"Well, I can't possibly refuse such an eager offer now can I?" Rin was such a darling and I knew that if I ever wanted to even think of getting into a serious relationship with Sesshomaru I had to take her into consideration. She had been involved in maybe two or three of our dates and I enjoyed seeing her. With her bubbly attitude and lovely charisma it was hard to ever refuse the girl. Sesshomaru just let out a slight grin before plucking a bouquet of orange tiger lilies from the stand next to him.

"Come to my house at seven tomorrow then." He answered as he placed the bouquet in my arms. "And bring these with you tomorrow." I nodded as he gave me a quick peck and left with Rin in tow. What was going to happen tomorrow?

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**Thanks for reading! Please Review!  
Kaoruhana ^_^**


	10. Can't Cook

**Here it is: Enjoy!  
**

**Can't Cook

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I rang Sesshomaru's doorbell and Rin opened it. She looked unhappy about something and I was wondering what was wrong.

"Hi sweetie," I greeted walking in, "what's wrong?"

"Daddy can't cook!" I raised my eyes at her statement as she dragged me to the kitchen. Sesshomaru stood next to a pot on the stove that looked like it had seen better days. Near him, the sink was piled with dishes. And there was a distinct smell of something burning as well.

"Sesshomaru?" I asked tentatively. He turned around and I noticed a slight blush cross his face.

"Kagome." He hastily glanced around the kitchen. After a few moments of assessing the damage he spoke again. "I'm sorry about this." I walked up to him, turning off the stove and salvaging the burnt pot on it while I kissed him. At least I now knew he couldn't cook. Finally, I had a flaw that I could pin on him. Though, I mused it would have been rather nice if he could cook.

"Relax." I kissed him again for emphasis. "Do you like Chinese takeout?" He nodded pointing to a number on the refrigerator and I then noticed the myriad of take out menus on it. Remembering Rin's earlier words I turned to my boyfriend.

"Thank you." It was obvious to me that Sesshomaru had tried to cook for me tonight despite his lack of culinary skills. I had to give his romantic moves some credit. He seemed surprised I would thank him and I hastily explained. "You didn't have to impress me by doing something you don't have a lot of-" I paused trying to find words that wouldn't hurt his pride, "experience in." He looked at me and snuffed off my comment but I could see the joy reflected in his eyes at my obvious appreciation of his cooking attempt.

"Rin," Sesshomaru called as he turned away, "can you bring the phone over?" She nodded dissapearing as I saw Sesshomaru look back at me. "I will make sure that the next dinner I make will be more adequate." I only smiled as I leaned over and kissed his cheek.

"We'll sign up for cooking classes together okay?" He looked at me in shock as I laughed at his expression and took the phone from Rin. "It'd be beneficial to the both of us Sesshomaru." I sang dialing the number of Panda Express and wondering if he would ever take me up on the offer. Probably not, I mused as the man on the other end answered.

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**So what do you think? It's longer! Thanks for reading and please review!  
Kaoruhana ^_^**


	11. Unexpected

**Here it is: Unexpected  


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"Hello Kagome's Flowers, how may I help you?" I asked picking up my work phone and answering as I usually did.

"Kagome, it's me Sesshomaru." I leaned forward onto the counter, twirling a lock of hair as I answered.

"Why hello to you too." I was kind of miffed at the offhand greeting I received. "Is there a reason you called?"

"Do you mind picking Rin up from school today?" he asked with a slight hint of frustration evident in his voice. "I have a really picky client today and I might not be able to make it to her school on time. You're one of the few people she and I both trust and-" he trailed off and I replied.

"Sure." I knew how a bad day at work could sometimes make any person a bit crabby. "Hey Sess, you want to talk about it?" There was a pause on the other line before he sighed.

"I'd rather not, client confidentiality and what-not. But I do warn you, if I'm a bit peeved for the next few days, please don't take it personally." I smiled inwardly pleased- it wasn't like him to apologize beforehand and the fact that he was attempting a simple change for me made me bubble with happiness inside.

"No problems." I turned to the door as a customer walked in. "Well, I have to go now but don't worry. I'll call you when I pick up Rin from school."

"Thanks."

"Your welcome." We said our goodbyes and I hung up the phone only to come face to face with someone that I didn't expect.

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**Sorry for the cliffhanger. Thanks for reading and please review!  
Kaoruhana ^_^  
**


	12. History of the Ex

**First, I never expected this story to become so popular and so I want to thank everyone who reads it! You make me so happy! **

**Anyway, here it is: Snippet 12- History of the Ex **

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**I was sulky and I had been sulky all afternoon. I think Sesshomaru noticed it when he came to pick up Rin.

"What's wrong?" were the first words leaving his mouth when he saw me. I sighed not sure how to approach the subject. Usually, this was a talk I would have with my girls, specifically Sango. Deciding to go ahead I told him what had happened.

"My ex came to the shop today." Sesshomaru's eyebrows went up and he turned to Rin.

"Rin, why don't you go pick some flowers for our house?" The little girl was more than happy to do so; I think she could sense that we wanted to have a private talk. Soon after she walked away and Sesshomaru turned to me again.

"So, what happened?" I let out a weary sigh before telling Sesshomaru about Inuyasha. I had ended my relationship with him but it still hurt to think of what he did.

"Inuyasha and I had a long serious relationship," I began choosing my words carefully. "We were together for nearly three years and he told me he had something important to tell me the day of our three-year anniversary." I blinked back the tears that always accompanied the pain of his actions and decided to play with the design on the counter. "Yeah well, the important thing he had to tell me was that he and one of my best friends had been dating for six months behind my back and that he was leaving me for her. And that's that."

"Kagome," Sesshomaru titled my head up and wiped a few stray tears from my face. "he is an idiot to leave someone as wonderful as you. I'm sorry for the pain he put you through and I will not be as foolish as to make the same mistakes." I nodded my head, noticing Sesshomaru walk behind the counter and felt him embrace me.

In his own offhand way, I knew that he was comparing himself to show me he could treat me better but it didn't really help matters much. He seemed to realize this as he lifted my head up so I could see his face better.

"You are much too beautiful for him." He murmured capturing my lips in a chaste kiss. Breaking away from it, he looked me in the eyes. I noticed that his golden eyes held something in them, an emotion I was unsure of. Pulling my head near his again he slowly leaned down letting my lips caress his before engaging me in a passionate kiss. He was subtle at first but as the kiss continued our actions grew bolder. I hissed slightly as he bit my lip and pushed me into opening my mouth moving his tongue to battle mine in the process. After a few minutes, I was afraid I wouldn't be able to stop myself from taking it further and was about to push him away when he slowly pulled away himself. I blinked back at him as I tried to catch my breath.

"Never forget I am better than him Kagome." Sesshomaru's husky voice penetrated the fog in my brain as he moved down to nuzzle my neck. As his words sunk in, I understood what the emotion in his eyes had been: a strong burning desire and dare I say a hint of love or something akin to that? I smiled as I leaned into him, both of us not noticing Rin's presence nearby until she called for her father. As he broke away from our hold to look at her I knew something was growing in my heart for Sesshomaru- perhaps love. I realized then that I had finally moved on from Inuyasha.

"Thank you Sesshomaru." I whispered not caring if he understood. The fact that he had brought a slight vitality to my life again was enough for me. He turned to me and his eyes softened as though he understood.

"Do you want to have dinner together later?" I asked as I saw him get ready to pay and most likely leave soon afterwards. "I can make dinner for the three of us and –" Sesshomaru put a finger to my lips effectively stopping me.

"I'd love to come to dinner later. Rin was supposed to spend the night at her grandfather's house anyway." I nodded pleased as I took the money for the flowers and watched them leave a huge smile on my face. My eyes fell onto the card gone unnoticed by Sesshomaru on the counter- Inuyasha and Kikyo's Wedding Invitation- and I felt a slight pang of sadness. Secretly though, I was happy to have finally moved on and found the closure I desired, just as I hoped the engaged couple would. Deciding to close-up, I made my way home wondering what to make for dinner.

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**So, I hope to god that the unexpected person wasn't too cliche! I mean I mentioned him before (chapter 1) and I felt this made sense. I wonder how many of you expected this? I had to update earlier than usual because so many people wanted to know about the surprise guest!  
Anyway, thanks for reading and please review!  
Kaoruhana ^_^  
**


	13. Brotherly Love

**I'm glad you guys liked the Inuyasha twist. Here's the next snippet: Brotherly Love

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**Inuyasha opened his door only to meet with a fist flying into his face. He immediately retaliated but stopped as he saw who was at the door.

"Sesshomaru? What the hell are you doing here?" He was pretty sure that Sesshomaru didn't even know where he lived. Behind him he heard Kikyo call his name and he told her that he was talking with the guest and that she needn't worry about it.

"What kind of bastard are you?" Sesshomaru spat knowing that there was only one Inuyasha in all of Tokyo. After hearing Kagome talk, he couldn't help but feel ashamed of the fact that his own blood would do something as disgraceful as tearing apart Kagome. It was a shame to his family's honor and to Kagome's. "What gave you the right to hurt her?"

"Hurt who?" Inuyasha asked genuinely confused. The only girl he knew that Sesshomaru associated with was his daughter. "Look I didn't do anything to hurt Rin, so you can just piss off." He turned to shut the door but it was caught in the older male's hands.

"What made you think I was talking about Rin? I'm talking about Kagome." Sesshomaru watched as Inuyasha's face paled considerably as he recognized the name. "What gave you the right," Sesshomaru taunted, "to crush her?" A tense silence followed until Inuyasha sighed. He at first didn't want to admit he knew her but knew that the chances of this occurring were one in a million and he might as well get this over with.

"Look, it's not my fault I fell in love with Kikyo okay? And how the hell do you know Kagome anyway?"

"She's my girlfriend." The eldest brother announced watching as Inuyasha's eyes widened. With a growl Sesshomaru continued with his threat. "And I swear if you so much as look in her direction ever again I will not hesitate to kill you." _Kagome was his_ and his male pride would not rest until he made sure that she was happy and protected- emotionally and physically.

Inuyasha gulped backing off from the issue. The only time he had seen his brother this protective was around Rin. Whatever relationship he and Kagome had, he knew better than to get in between it.

"Look I don't even see her anymore okay? The only reason I went to her the other day was cause Kikyo wanted to invite her to our wedding. She and I are strangers now okay so just back off." Satisfied, Sesshomaru turned to leave before a wicked smirk crossed his face.

"Inuyahsa?" He called out to be met with his half-brother's face.

"Yeah?" Pulling back his fist, Sesshomaru sent a hearty punch to his brother's face. He suddenly felt much better as he turned to leave.

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**SPAIN WON THE WORLD CUP :)**

**Anyway, what do you think? Thanks for reading and please review!  
**

**Kaoruhana ^_^  
**


	14. To go or not to go

**Thanks to all those who read and review! I usually reply to them but I've been kind of busy today, so except long replies tomorrow!  
snmwordbender**- **I haven't been able to thank you for your reviews and I want to now! Thanks a lot! And not to worry, I'm really grateful to each and every reviewer! **

**Here it is: To go or not to go?**

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"To go or not to go?" I stated to my empty apartment. In front of me was Inuyasha and Kikyo's wedding invitation which I had received a week ago. I wasn't sure whether or not to go. If I did, it would feel like things were being thrown in my face and the only way for that not to happen was if I took Sesshomaru as my date; something I doubted would happen. I could hardly see him as the kind of guy who would want to go to my ex's wedding. If I didn't go it would seem as though I was willing to draw out the feud between Inuyasha, Kikyo, and I. I sighed, for the umpteenth time, and jumped as the doorbell rang. Getting up, I opened it to find Sesshomaru.

"Sess?" I asked confused. Why was he here? And where was Rin? "Is everything okay?"

"Yes." He was tired I could tell but he was also angry. I hoped that he wasn't angry at me though what he could be angry at me for I wasn't sure.

"Kagome," he began, walking in as I moved away from the door. "My stupid half-brother is getting married in a week and his bride wants me to be the best-man." I blinked surprised.

"You have a brother?" Sesshomaru looked at me and let out a sigh. He sat down and I followed suit wondering if he was going to answer my question. I noticed that his face took on a serious look and I sat back bracing myself. Whatever he was going to tell me would obviously be something really important and highly private.

"Inuyasha is my half-brother." I stared at him wide-eyed not sure how to respond to his sudden statement. I should have seen that coming I thought. They had the same hair, same eyes- well almost same eyes. Sesshomaru's were a molten gold while Inuyasha's were slightly darker and resembled glossy amber. And they were both a little hard to hack at sometimes personality wise but I knew that I preferred the brother in front of me more.

"Kagome?" Sesshomaru prompted me out of my thoughts.

"It's just a little shocking," I admitted as I pieced together my thoughts, "you're so alike and different and it's…" I trailed off not being able to voice out what was in my head. I then remembered what he had stated when he walked in and decided to approach that topic. Yes, that was the safest option right now.

"Kikyo wants you to be the best-man?" He nodded. "What are you going to do?"

"I want to say no. Out of all the people in the world why did she have to choose me?" He stood up and began pacing. "I mean I don't even know her but I already dislike her."

"Dislike her?" I asked confused. What had made Sesshomaru dislike her?

"She betrayed you." He answered as he took a seat next to me. Neither of us said anything for a while and I bit my lip before deciding to say what was on my mind.

"Well, you know, it's okay if you say yes." I began knowing this was a delicate subject. "In fact just before you came I was thinking of whether or not to go to their wedding." I licked my lips before continuing with the idea that had suddenly come into my mind. "In fact, I think I'd like to go as your date."

I watched as Sesshomaru processed the information I had given him. It seemed that he wasn't sure of what to do. I had a feeling that part of him knew he had to go to the wedding because Inuyasha was family but it seemed he was rethinking the reasons he had to go.

"Are you sure?" he whispered silently after several minutes of contemplation.

"Yes," I answered much more affirmatively this time, "I think if I go I can finally put the feud from the betrayal to rest. Frankly, I'm tired of having to skirt around the issue all the time and I think this will be the perfect closure." We looked at each other and he seemed to read the sincerity in my eyes as he nodded soon after.

"All right then, I'll tell them I accept."

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Kaoruhana ^_^**


	15. Closure at a Wedding

**Here it is. Closure at a Wedding

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**The wedding was a quiet affair between the two families. Kikyo and Inuyasha looked so happy getting married that I couldn't consciously hold a grudge against them anymore. While part of me still resented the betrayal, I was kind of glad that it had happened and that I had found Sesshomaru.

"Kagome?" I turned to said man who was sitting next to me. "Do you want to stay here? Or do you want to go?" I smiled at him and squeezed the hand holding mine.

"I can stay. I'd kind of like to say congratulations and thank you."

"Thank you?" he asked genuinely confused. "Why would you want to thank them?"

"Because if this entire fiasco hadn't happened, I would have never been with you." He smiled turning his head as we heard footsteps.

"Hey Sesshomaru, you actually came!" Inuyasha's rough voice stated.

"I was your best man." he answered rolling his eyes as he turned to me. "Inuyasha, I'd like you to meet my date and current girlfriend." Inuyasha turned to look at me, as his new wife was already doing.

"Kagome?" he asked unsure. "What are you doing here and with him?" Inuyasha's accusatory tone angered me. Just because he had moved on with my best friend didn't mean I couldn't find happiness in his brother.

"Inuyasha," I began deciding to end this conversation before it escalated. "What's done is done. Can we at least stay friends?" I turned hopeful eyes to Kikyo whose face was now marred with tears.

"Sure." Kikyo answered as she moved forward and embraced me.

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**Kaoruhana ^_^  
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	16. He Looks Like

**I'm going to be really busy for a few days so I won't be able to reply to reviews on time . Please excuse me for these few days! Thanks.**

**Here it is. He Looks Like...**

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**Sango sat across from me in my apartment. She had known about the man I was dating for two months but had yet to meet him and was excited at the prospect of finally meeting him. Miroku, her fiancé casually relaxed. The doorbell rang and I jumped up to get it revealing Sesshomaru.

"Hello Kagome." he greeted stooping down for a kiss. "How are you?"

"Nervous." I answered pulling him inside and then standing next to him as we entered the living room. "Sango, Miroku, I'd like you to meet Sesshomaru." Both blinked a few times, obviously noticing his striking resemblance to Inuyasha. Miroku was the first to speak.

"It's nice to meet you. I'm Miroku and this here is my fiancé Sango." Sango took this as her cue and stated her greetings. Sesshomaru took my original seat and I smiled glad that there wasn't too much tension.

"I'll finish getting dinner ready in the kitchen. Sango, do you want to help?" Sango nodded and followed me into the kitchen. Before we could start anything, she cornered me.

"What are you thinking Kagome?"

"Huh?" I asked confused.

"Are you sure you're over him- I mean he looks just like Inuyasha?" I laughed, understanding my friend's concern but knew I needed to get rid of it.

"He's Inuyasha's half-brother Sango and let me tell you they are nothing alike. In fact," I looked out the tiny kitchen opening towards the living room where Sesshomaru and Miroku were talking, "he has a daughter and is a really nice guy."

"Kagome," Sango began after a few moments, "from what you've told me he's a great guy. I can't do anything but say that I'm happy for you."

"Thanks Sango." I hugged her and she returned it. Moments later, I pulled away and turned to the stove. "Let's finish dinner okay?"

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	17. Sassy Gay Friend

**Here it is. Sassy Gay Friend  
**

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"What are you doing?" Sesshomaru asked as he sat next to me. Rin was with her grandparents and Sesshomaru and I were enjoying a quiet evening together at my apartment.

"Watching the sassy gay friend videos." I answered as the one with Ophelia loaded up on . "I saw the one with Juliet and it was amazing!" I clicked play, noticing the red bar had moved and we watched the video. When it finished, Sesshomaru quirked an eyebrow at me.

"Do all women require this? I figure they are smart enough to decide things on their own." I laughed but clued Sesshomaru in on the idea.

"Every women needs a few girlfriends to confide in from time to time." I explained. "But when those girls aren't there, sassy gay friends are available to fill in the role and prevent you from doing something stupid."

"And do you have one?"

"Sassy gay friend. Well, I guess Jakotsu counts cause he's definetly sassy. And he's bailed me out of bad situations before." Speaking of which, I remembered I was meeting him for coffee tomorrow.

"Hey Sess! I'm meeting Jakotsu for coffee tomorrow-do you want to come and meet him, I'm sure he won't mind." Sesshomaru didn't answer for a few moments but I saw the curiosity in his eyes and smiled knowing my answer.

"Awesome! I'll go tell him now!"

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	18. You Need to get Laid

**Here it is. You Need to get Laid  
**

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"Kagome!" Jakotsu practically leaped out of his chair as he moved forward to hug his friend. "It's so good to see you again!" Kagome smiled as she hugged Jakotsu back. For the past six months Jakotsu had been in Osaka setting up his restaurant's new branch, which was going to be managed by his cousin Suikotsu. He had called her immediately on his return to Tokyo and Kagome was more than glad to meet him.

"How are you?" She asked as she moved to take a seat noticing the new face at the table.

"Good, oh Kagome darling, this is Bankotsu-my boyfriend. He's wonderful!" Kagome held out her hand which Bankotsu shook.

"It's nice to meet you." He nodded his head as he took a sip of his coffee. Jakotsu got the conversation rolling again as he began to inquire about Sesshomaru.

"Where's your man Kagome?"

"He's on his way here, he has to drop his daughter off with someone." The gay man nodded as he leaned forward to get some dish on Kagome's relationship.

"So, how's he in bed?" Kagome sputtered wondering why on earth she had to keep having awkward conversations in coffee shops. First, she had been asked out by Sesshomaru, now she was being quizzed on her sex life by Jakotsu?

"Jak," she whispered embarrassed, "not here." Jakotsu however would not let the matter rest. His eyes had widened initially but now glinted and Kagome knew that whatever plan he had in his head was not going to bring good news to her.

"Darling, are you telling me that in all this time you have not been laid?" Kagome opted to tell the truth fearing the worst if she had to tell a lie; she couldn't describe a sex-life with Sesshomaru if she didn't have one. Jakotsu shook his head, turned to his boyfriend, and whispered conspiringly in his ear. Satisfied after a while, he turned back to Kagome.

"I'm giving you three weeks, three weeks to get laid. And if you two do not come up and tell me you had sex, I will take matters into my own hands."

"Jak you can't!" Kagome was positively mortified by now and the voice that she heard next made her want to sink into the ground.

"What can't he do Kagome?" Sesshomaru's smooth voice cut in. He turned to the guests at the table wondering what had made his girlfriend so distraught. Spotting the more effeminate of the two he opted to greet him first. "You must be Jakotsu, I'm Sesshomaru." He held out his hand which Jakotsu immediately shook returning the greeting.

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	19. Morning After

**I hope everyone will be happy with this snippet- the longest so far! I've been away for four days visiting my uncle and aunt. They have no internet connection. So, my sister agreed to update for me (over those four days) and that is why I have not replied to reviews. I wrote this snippet while I was away! Enjoy!

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Morning After

I smiled as I looked over at the man sleeping next to me. He looked calm and content when sleeping making me wonder if this was the only time I could ever see him so peaceful and happy. Leaning over, I brushed a kiss to his forehead and moved back. At this point Sesshomaru's eyes opened and it was a while longer before his eyes came into focus. When they did, I blushed at the look in his eyes.

"Good morning Kagome." He whispered huskily as he leaned over me.

"Morning." I mumbled as I watched his hair tumble over his shoulder. It made my breath hitch and the raw sensuality he oozed prompted me to want a repeat of the night before. Shaking my thoughts away, I pulled myself out of bed and away from him before hightailing it to the bathroom door. I locked it and then smiled goofishly at myself in the mirror jumping up and down in happiness before I moved to take a shower.

When I stepped out, Sesshomaru was sitting on the bed looking at me with those lusty eyes of his. I paused as I made my way over to get clothes and quickly turned around before I reacted to his gaze.

"Do you want to take a shower?" My voice was kind of raspy and I cursed his effect on me.

"Yes please." I pointed towards the bathroom door and told him there were extra towels on the towel hanger. I heard him move to the bathroom and I sighed before dressing. Finally, I thought of what to give him to wear. Finding something, I placed it on the bed and left the room.

"You know Kagome; I'm wondering why you had these clothes." Sesshomaru stated curiosity and though I was sure he would deny it to anyone, a little jealousy getting the best of him. I was startled by his sudden appearance but relaxed as I heard what he said.

"They're my brothers; Souta loves to crash at my place for no reason." I explained, "I have some of his clothes at my disposal so that when he crashes here I don't have to worry about clothes." I plated the omelets and took a seat at the dining table along with Sesshomaru. Taking a good look I realized that he had been able to fix the draw string on the shorts but that the shirt was tight and left little to hide.

"What time do you have to pick up Rin?" I wanted to know how much time I had before Sesshomaru left and gear my thoughts away from the way he looked.

"I pick her up after lunch." I nodded as we continued eating. As I was taking my last few bites, I felt something crawl up my leg. I ignored it, but as I felt it start to higher and higher I was wondering what it was. I heard a chuckle and started. Looking up from my plate, I saw Sesshomaru's face had come near me. He leaned forward until his lips brushed my ear and I sat frozen in place unsure of what to do.

"You know _Ka-go-me_, we have enough time for a repeat of last night." I opened my mouth hearing this, not sure how to respond. I could tell there was a faint blush on my cheeks and I wanted to give in to his sinful voice. Loud knocking on the door interrupted the moment.

"I'll get it!" My voice seemed louder than usual but I could have cared less. Opening the door, I groaned in frustration wishing I hadn't been so eager to open it. I did not want my brother here right now.

"Hey Kagome!" He enthusiastically greeted before hearing me groan. "Everything okay?" I wanted to shoo him away like a little kid but knew that would be pointless. More so, it would have been futile since I turned and saw Sesshomaru standing behind me.

"Who is this?" Both men asked at the same time.

"Who am I?" Souta began defensively as I opted to stay out and see where this conversation would lead. "Who are you and what are you doing with my sister?" Sesshomaru didn't answer, I suppose I couldn't blame him; how exactly do you explain that you spent the night at the sisters house doing certain _things._ When Souta kept prompting him, not too nicely might I add, I decided that I had enough.

"Souta stop it! Sesshomaru is my boyfriend and you have no right to treat him that way!" I pushed him out the door and shut it behind me hoping Sesshomaru would get the hint to stay out of the conversation. I had wanted to enjoy the morning with Sesshomaru and perhaps partake in the activity he had suggested and I would be damned if my brother stopped me.

"Your boyfriend?" Souta began as soon as the door closed. "You're sleeping with him Kagome!"

"So what?" I stated clearly miffed. Souta had no reason to control my love life, especially when he hadn't been privy to it. "Sesshomaru has been my boyfriend for three months Souta, three amazing months and I will not have you ruin anything that we worked for in this relationship. Whatever you need, it can wait till tonight!"

It seemed to take a while for Souta to process the information I had given him. Granted, I did feel bad about him not knowing but I had wanted Sesshomaru to meet my family only when I knew this relationship was going to be kind of serious, not a fling. My mother knew, but that was only because she had come to the hospital after our disastrous first date. Finally, Souta nodded his head.

"Oh thank you so much! I love you, remember that, and tell Mom, Grandpa, and Shippo I love them too! Oh thank you Souta!" I pulled him into a quick hug, gave him a light-hearted kiss on the head and watched him walk away as I walked back inside. The sight that met me had my eyes widen.

I knew that Souta's shirt would be a little tight for Sesshomaru but I had never expected him to take it off. Seeing him half naked and sprawled out on my living room couch I did I only thing that seemed perfect for a woman in my situation. I locked my door, and sauntered over to him making sure to add an extra twist in my walk. When I reached him I leaned down close and whispered in his ear.

"Weren't you saying something about a repeat of last night?" Sesshomaru responded by sitting up and pulling me close to him so that he could whisper into my ear as his fingers played with my shirt.

"I believe the bedroom is a more appropriate place."

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**Kaoruhana ^_^  
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	20. Gossip

**Hi there, sorry this is late. The internet connection last night wasn't there, so I had to resort to posting now. Anyway, enjoy chapter 20!

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Gossip

"So how was it?" Jakotsu prompted. Since yesterday's coffee date had been cancelled it had been rescheduled to today, a half hour ago, and this time it was only me and Jakotsu. I recalled that it was only due to Jakotsu that certain actions had progressed and slightly grimaced as I remembered how Sesshomaru had wanted to rectify the situation when he had first met Jakotsu.

_"It's so nice to meet you Sesshomaru. Oh, this is Bankotsu, my boyfriend by the way." Jakotsu was beaming as he introduced his boyfriend and Bankotsu nodded his head as Sesshomaru took a seat at the table. _

_ "So what can you not do Jakotsu?" I paled as my boyfriend went straight to the matter at hand. I begged to leave but was pinned there by Sesshomaru's hold on my arm. Looking down at the ground, I wondered if it would let me disappear into it. _

_ "We're talking about Kagome's non-existent sex life." Jakotsu blurted out. I suppose he figured that telling Sesshomaru this would get things rolling in the way that he wanted. Seeing a glint in Sesshomaru's eyes I bet he was assured that what he said was correct while I wondered what in the world that glint could possibly mean to my future happiness. _

_ "Really?" Sesshomaru stood up, easing me out of my chair reluctantly in the process. "I suppose that will have to be rectified. Later gentlemen." I stood there for three whole seconds before running after Sesshomaru. Did he mean what I thought he meant? _

"Kagome," Jakotsu prompted again snapping me out of my thoughts, "Was it that good?"

"Wonderful." I answered gazing out the window and thinking back on the events following Jakotsu's intervention. Deciding to stop those inappropriate thoughts, especially with a friend who was more than eager to help with them, I addressed my friend.

"Look Jak, I appreciate you helping Sesshomaru and I get together in that way but I'd rather not discuss it right now, you know?" As it was, this was a fairly new direction in our relationship and while it was okay to gush about kisses I felt this was more of a private thing and until both Sesshomaru and I were going to take this further it was better not discussed for a while. Jakotsu sighed, pouted, and when I refused to give in to his demands finally gave up.

"Oh, all right! So how long has that man been yours?" I smiled glad at the change in the conversation.

"Three months."

"Oh, a keeper huh?" I smiled at him and nodded, wondering if Sesshomaru felt the same way. Of course he would I assured myself, after all he was willing to be in a relationship with me of all people.

"Tell me Kagome, I've missed out on so much since I've been in Osaka and I need to know the latest gossip. What has happened in the last six months that I should know?" I took a sip of my dark chocolate mocha as I thought of all that had happened in my life over the past six months. Finally, I settled on some information I was sure that Jakotsu would appreciate.

"Inuyasha, Kikyo, and I made up at their wedding."

"What?" Jakotsu's yell had several patrons nearby look at us and we apologized before I continued.

"Well," I wasn't sure how to begin the story but decided to start with the half-brother deal first, "let's starts with Inuyasha and Sesshomaru being half-brothers." Jakotsu gaped at me.

"You should have seen that coming hon."

"I know, anyway, can we move on past that?" He nodded and I continued. "Well, since they are family, Sesshomaru was obviously kind of obligated to go to the wedding and since I'd received the invitation I was kind of planning of to go anyway." Jakotsu placed his coffee cup on the table rather harshly.

"Why the nerve of them! First they diss you and then they invite you to their wedding!"

"It's okay Jak." I assured him. "I'm actually really glad because I'd have never met Sesshomaru if it wasn't for that entire fiasco you know?" He nodded and probed me for more information.

"So, how did this entire thing come to be? I need to know the details Kagome, details!" I laughed and wondered how I had managed to be friends with this gossip diva.

"Well it all kind of started when Sess came storming into my apartment saying Kikyo wanted him to be the best man. That was when the bag kind of spilled and I found out all the information. And to cut it short, we both went to the wedding together, and yes he was still the best man. I kind of told them I wanted closure you know, and that's it."

"That's it?" Jakotsu looked put out and I wondered if I should have given him more information but hastily squashed that thought. Jakotsu was a gossip leech and I would have never been able to get rid of him after that. "There was no drama, nothing?"

"No drama. That was all that happened." I stated hastily and looked down at the table to avoid his speculative gaze. Finally, he sighed.

"Well then, Kags, if that's all, you have to excuse me. Bank promised me a surprise today and I can't wait to see what he planned! I'm sure it'll be great!" I sent Jakotsu off with my goodbyes and smiled as I finished my drink.

I had started dating Sesshomaru sometime in March and it was now June, almost time for summer. As usual, I was going to close the shop next week and join my family on the annual one-week trip to Okinawa. But this time, I wanted to invite Sesshomaru and Rin to join us. Rin, I was sure would love to come, but Sesshomaru I wasn't sure about. How would he take to spending a week with my family? Perhaps, I mused as I stood up and threw my empty cup away; I might be able to entice him by telling him we would most likely end up sharing a room.

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	21. Vacation with Kagome?

**Here it is, the next snippet: Vacation with Kagome. This is entirely in Sesshomaru's POV by the way.  
Enjoy! :)  


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I looked at Kagome who was nervously biting her fingernails and had hardly spoken a word to me during dinner. I couldn't understand what I had done wrong today, if indeed I had done anything wrong at all. We had eaten dinner at a rather upscale restaurant and I was planning on seducing her before the night ended- Rin would be asleep by then so it wouldn't be too much of an issue. As it was now, I was thinking that my plan for the night was a lost cause.

"What did I do wrong?" I asked her without thinking. I was glad we were secluded because I would never admit in my entire life that I did something wrong- I only handled things differently and sometimes they didn't work out to the best of outcomes. To my surprise, Kagome's eyes widened in shock. Why would they- unless- had she been thinking of something else?

"Kagome, about what happened a few days ago, when I-" I paused trying to find a subtle way to approach the issue, "spent the night over, if you regret it, I'm sorry. It may have been too early and…"

"Stop!" Her exclamation was followed immediately as I calmly waited for her to explain. It wasn't long before she began speaking.

"I'm sorry I've been acting odd all night. The dinner was wonderful, and I-" she blushed and I found that I rather liked the red hue her cheeks took, especially when I heard the next few words she said. "I wouldn't mind too much if we did it again. It's just that I'll be gone next week and that's kind of been on my mind all night."

"Gone?" I asked confused, she hadn't mentioned anything about that.

"Yes, my family takes an annual beach trip to Okinawa and it's going to be the following week. Remember my brother?" I nodded my head. "That's what he came to talk to me about that time you met him. I kind of forgot all about it until Souta mentioned it or I would have told you earlier." Seeing her feel guilty I felt a slight twinge. She had no reason to feel ashamed for forgetting such a fact when I myself hid certain information about my family from her for a while, at least until Inuyasha's wedding plans and the night I'd kind of stormed into her apartment.

"It's okay." I assured her. "When will you be back?" I was planning on taking a beach trip with Rin and was going to ask Kagome about it soon but decided to postpone the trip to a later date.

"Um that's actually kind of something I wanted to talk to you about." I was slightly panicked at her words but didn't show it in my face. Deciding to hear her out I took a deep breath and spoke, not liking the way my voice reflected my waver in emotions.

"Explain." Kagome smiled and laid her hand on mine from across the table.

"Well, I know this is kind of sudden but I was wondering if you and Rin wanted to join us? She's on vacation right now and I thought that the two of you might like to meet my family." I stopped as I registered her words. She had been agitated all night simply because of she was afraid I would refuse to meet her family? Well that was something that had to be fixed.

"Join your family on vacation?" I asked to make sure that I heard right. At her nod, I quickly thought over the decision. It wouldn't hurt to meet them and I felt that Rin would appreciate Shippo's presence at the beach since it would give her a playmate. Plus, spending a week with Kagome clad in swimwear- I would not refuse it. I was a man and while I wouldn't force Kagome into things, there was nothing preventing me from appreciating her beauty and her presence so I would take it when I could.

"I would love to come; I just have to clear it with my father first at work." Kagome nodded with a smile as I wondered if I could continue with my previous plans for the night now that she was in a better mood. I supposed I could as I decided to increase the charm once again.

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	22. Arrival

**First I want to thank everyone for making this my most popular story! That makes me so happy :)  
Second, here is snippet 22: Arrival. Enjoy :)

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I stepped out of the car and then opened the back door for Rin who eagerly clambered out. My family had arrived last night and since someone needed to show Sesshomaru the way to the house anyway, I arrived the following day around mid-morning with him in tow. We had taken a flight from Tokyo to Okinawa and upon Sesshomaru's insistence had driven a rental car to my family's beach house. It was actually my mother's childhood home and my grandparents had lived there until my grandmother had passed. After that, my grandfather had come to live with us and mother paid someone to come by once a month to check the house. Now, it was the beach house which we visited annually at least once. It was usually the place we gathered around wintertime as well.

I smiled at Sesshomaru who had finished unloading the bags and locked the car. Rin tugged my hand and asked if we could go in. I told her to wait a minute and grabbed a bag from Sesshomaru telling him to take only as much as he could carry. I was going to send Souta out to get the rest later.

"Mama!" I called as soon as I stepped in. "I'm here!" I heard bustling from the kitchen and in the time it took for the three of us to remove our shoes she had come out to greet us.

"Kagome! Oh, it's so good to see you!" She smiled as she hugged me and then bent down to greet Rin. "Hello, I'm Mrs. Higurashi, nice to meet you Rin." Rin immediately latched on to my mother's words and I couldn't help but wonder if my mother ever had a bad effect on anyone.

"Mama," I called before Rin completely distracted her, "this is Sesshomaru- Rin's father and my boyfriend." Mama smiled as she shook his hand.

"It's nice to meet you again Sesshomaru."

"Likewise Mrs. Higurashi." Mama informed us of our accommodations and I was miffed to hear that all three men were at the beach so I would have to bring the luggage up myself. Souta was going to sleep on the pull out sofa and Rin would sleep with Shippo and my mother in the guest bedroom.

"You and Sesshomaru I assumed would be sharing a room?" She asked as she turned to make her way into the kitchen with Rin following close behind.

"Yes." It never ceased to amaze me how much my mother knew me. I lead Sesshomaru upstairs where all three bedrooms were and took him to the one that Shippo shared with my mother. It was furnished with a bunk-bed and I informed him that Rin would sleep on the bottom.

"And your mother?" he asked carefully setting down Rin's suitcase and travel bag. I pointed to the other bed on the side of the room.

"My mother has three older brothers. This used to be their room." He nodded as I led him to my mother's old room.

It was moderately furnished and other than the change in bed- from a twin to a queen size- everything was the same from when my mother lived here. There was a dresser to the right of the bed and a closet to the left with a window overlooking the front yard in front. It was perfect to me.

"Do you like it?" I asked not hearing any reaction from Sesshomaru. He set the bags down and came forward to embrace me from behind nuzzling my neck.

"Our room." He stated as I looked around. I turned in his hold and smiled up at him.

"Yes Sesshomaru, our room."

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	23. Family Dinner

**Here it is folks, snippet 23 : Family Dinner**

**Enjoy!

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We all sat around the dining table eating dinner and I wondered if Souta and my grandfather would stop staring at Sesshomaru like he was an unwanted being. Really, why hadn't they shown this much of a fight when I had informed them of him coming?

"Father, Souta, stop that right now!" Everyone turned their attention to my mother who was positively fuming. It was rare to see my mother angry and I knew that Souta and grandfather were in for a rude scolding.

"Sesshomaru is our guest and whether you like it or not- yes Souta that was directed to you- he is Kagome's boyfriend. I refuse to have him treated disrespectfully in this home. He has done nothing to deserve that!"

"But he slept with Kagome mother!" I paled at Souta's declaration and wondered what my mother would say to that. To my surprise she turned to Shippo.

"Shippo are you done with dinner?" Shippo nodded and my mother asked Rin the same question. When she got another affirmative answer, she told both kids to watch TV in the living room and they scurried off feeling the tension in the air. I wondered what would happen now. She waited until sounds from the television were heard from the other room before addressing me.

"Kagome, is what Souta say's true?" I blanched not knowing how to respond and silently turned to Sesshomaru who addressed my mother.

"Yes, my relationship with your daughter has progressed to that level."

"Well," she sighed after a few moments, "I can't stop you two but be careful all right? As much as I want to see grandchildren run around I do not want any unplanned pregnancies you hear?" Both Sesshomaru and I nodded as Souta and grandfather sputtered in shock.

"And you Souta! You do not scream things like that at a dinner table. I have raised you with better manners and you know better than to interfere like that in your sister's life. Apologize now! And father, you have no right to glare at Sesshomaru either you hear?"

Grandfather nodded as Souta begrudgingly apologized and the dinner table was slowly cleared. I helped my mother with dishes in the kitchen and we had some quality talking time.

"So, this is serious huh?" I blushed remembering the dinner conversation and nodded my head in understanding.

"Tell me about him Kagome. What is he like?"

"He's really sweet mama," I answered her, "He's a little cold and stiff but sometimes that disappears around me and it makes me so happy when that happens. Do you know he tried to cook for me even though he's terrible in the kitchen? And he tries so hard to make sure that I feel happy in this relationship. I'm really happy with him mama." I stopped what I was doing. Feeling a hand on my shoulder, I turned to look at my mother.

"I'm glad you found him Kagome. He seems to make you happy and that's all I really want for you. Just be careful you know?" I knew that her words were more of a mother's concern and I did what I needed to do as a daughter to appease them to an extent.

"I will mama."

When mama and I walked back out to the living room we were surprised at what we saw. Sesshomaru and my grandfather were engaged in a deep discussion on history, from what I could hear, feudal history, and Souta was giving piggy-back rides to Rin and Shippo. I pinched myself to make sure I hadn't suddenly entered into an alternate universe.

"Well," my mother announced making our presence known, "I'm glad things are better now." She took a seat by Souta and Rin immediately clambered to her asking her if she would keep her promise and teach her how to braid. Shippo and Souta made faces at that and decided to take a walk on the beach.

"Father," my mother stated after a few minutes, "It's time for your show if you would like to watch it." I had relaxed into a seat next to Sesshomaru watching my mother teach Rin.

"Of course!" Grandfather turned away from Sesshomaru as soon as his favorite show was mentioned. "Excuse me Sesshomaru, but can we continue this conversation later?"

"Certainly." I noticed how cordial and respectful Sesshomaru had been towards both my mother and my grandfather and was glad that he had managed to slip into their good graces. Now, if only he could win over Souta.

"Kagome," I leaned against Sesshomaru waiting for him to continue, "do you think your mother would mind watching Rin for a few minutes while we take a walk?"

"I don't think so, let me ask her." I looked down at my mother who was sitting on the floor with Rin.

"Mama?" Once I had her attention I continued. "Do you mind watching Rin for a little while? Sesshomaru and I want to take a walk." My mother smiled and assured it that it would be okay. With thankful smiles directed her way we left.

Sesshomaru and I walked by the beach, a mere ten minutes walk from the house, and admired the scenery as well as the silence. It was nice to spend such a romantic moment with him, nothing too big on our minds and just the two of us, holding hands and walking.

"Thank you for inviting me." He interrupted as we stopped and took a seat in the sand. "Your family's very nice." I drew circles with my free hand in the sand.

"I'm sorry about Souta. He's not always like this, it's just that ever since the Inuyasha fiasco he's been more careful with me. It's nice on his part but I still feel bad about the way he treats you."

"It's okay." His hand came on top of mine and he moved so that I was sitting in front of him. "I understand how he feels and I don't blame him."

"But-" My protests were cut off as he engaged me in a deep kiss.

"Hush Kagome, let's enjoy our walk." I nodded leaning forward and meeting him for another kiss. Souta's problems could wait till later.

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**I hope you liked it! Thanks for reading and please review. Can we try to shoot for 220 reviews by tomorrow?  
Kaoruhana ^_^**


	24. Reconciliation

**Hi! I apologize about the length of this chapter. You see, I found this challenge and I just had to start writing for it you know? Then I had to write this chapter and I just came home from a 4-hour shopping trip. But I still want to thank everyone for their reviews and to those who I cannot send a reply message to, thanks a lot :)**

**Here is snippet 24: Reconciliation

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**Souta looked over at Sesshomaru as they ate breakfast. It had been two days since he had arrived with Kagome. The first day he realized that what he had done at dinner was bad and yesterday when Sesshomaru and Kagome came back, Sesshomaru had been irritated about something and Kagome had talked to mama. They seemed to be in a better mood currently and he wondered if they had been able to reconcile over the night.

"Souta." He turned to his sister wondering what she wanted. Whatever it was, it was obvious that she seemed nervous about it and not happy in the least. "Sesshomaru wants to talk with you later." He nodded wondering what was going on and what her sister's boyfriend wanted to talk to him about. Whatever it was, he could handle it.

After breakfast he waited for Sesshomaru and followed him as he lead the way. Sesshomaru took them to the same spot he and Kagome had sat in two nights ago and plopped down in the sand. Souta followed his lead and took a seat as well.

"Kagome is unhappy." Sesshomaru stated as he stared at the sea. He wondered how his girlfriend's brother would interpret that.

"Why?" Souta asked. She seemed to be really happy around her boyfriend. He could hardly fathom what Sesshomaru was talking about.

"She believes that things will never be okay in our relationship if you and I cannot come to a truce. I proposed to try to talk to you to alleviate her concerns." Souta grumbled. As far as he saw this guy was a guy who was getting into his sister's pants and he couldn't stand that. Unless Sesshomaru was able to prove that he wasn't just in for the kicks Souta would not resist. But he supposed he could voice his concerns.

"Look, I don't know what your intentions are with my sister. I mean the first time I met you, you were wearing my clothes and it was fairly obvious you'd slept together. I don't know if you're just trying to get into her pants okay?"

"You think I'm with Kagome just for sex?" To say Sesshomaru was appalled was an understatement.

"You're not?" Sesshomaru laughed as he explained.

"I'll admit, it's nice to be with your sister in that way but I'm with her because she's much more that that. She's fierce, funny, and is perhaps the only woman in the world other than my daughter who can make fun of me and get away with it." Sesshomaru turned to Souta.

"That makes it better I guess." the younger man admitted. "But I'm still going to watch out for you."

"That's fine."

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	25. Distractions

**Hello! Here is the 25th chapter: Distractions**

**Enjoy!

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Sesshomaru sighed. He was tired and wishing more than anything that he could go outside and enjoy the last remnants of summer weather. It was nearing August now, almost two months since he had been at the beach house but he still liked to remember it- and wish he was there right now. With a longing glance out his office window he turned back to work.

"Sesshomaru!" He flipped his head up to see his father walk in.

"Yes father?" Mr. Taisho took a seat in front of his son's desk. He had noticed his son's rather pre-occupied mind all day and decided it was time to see what he was thinking about.

"You seem to have your thoughts elsewhere today." Sesshomaru winced. Was it that obvious that he wanted to leave?

"Sorry father." he apologized deciding not to elaborate further or tell his father his thoughts centered on a certain female. He may have mentioned in passing that he was seeing someone but he had never outright told his father that he had a serious girlfriend in Kagome.

"Don't worry about it," Inutaisho waved off the apology nonchalantly, "Just tell me, is it that girl you've been seeing that's in your thoughts?" Sesshomaru was hesitant to say anything- his father had a gleam in his eyes and whenever he saw that gleam it spelled something about his love life. However, he supposed it was only right for his father and step-mother to know that he was in a serious relationship with Kagome.

"Yes." Inutaisho clapped his hands together with joy. Oh this was wonderful! It was so nice to see his stoic son actually be with a woman. He just wanted grand kids again and though Inuyasha and Kikyo were married he doubted they would give him any grand kids soon so the burden fell on Sesshomaru's shoulders.

"I want to meet her!" He exclaimed quickly coming up with the perfect venue. "Rin's birthday party is going to be this Saturday right, well bring her with you then. I'm sure Rin would love to have her there." Sesshomaru, though taken aback by his father's sudden yell, nodded his head. It would be a good idea to have her meet his parents there. But how would she take to meeting his mother?

"I'll talk to her father." Sesshomaru explained before pushing his father out of the room. Now the only thing he had to worry about was telling Kagome. But he had a solution to that as well.

Rin had taken an instant liking to Kagome and her family and regularly spent her summer holidays helping Kagome in her shop, or at least, the days she wasn't nagging one of her grandmothers. He figured that telling Kagome in front of Rin would ensure her presence at the party. Though it was a rather underhanded way of dealing with things, it would do the charm and work. With that in mind, he bid his father goodbye and left work intent on his mission.

Sesshomaru pulled up in front of her shop twenty minutes later and walked in to see Rin and Kagome arranging flowers into bouquets by the counter. His presence was given away by the tinkling of the door chime and both looked up.

"Daddy!" Rin squealed waiting for him to reach her. "You're early!"

"I am." Sesshomaru accepted the hug his daughter gave him and looked at Kagome. "Aren't you going to greet me?" Kagome laughed and Sesshomaru found that her laughter lit up her face. He liked that.

"Hello Sesshomaru," she made her way out from behind the counter, "How was your day?"

"All right."

"I see, well was there any reason to come visit us early?" He had his arms around her now, Rin looking up at them happily.

"Well, you know it's Rin's birthday Friday?" Kagome nodded her head wondering why he was brining this up. "Every year my step-mother hosts her a party at the Taisho-house and this year your name is on the guest list." Kagome smiled seeing where this was going and hushed Sesshomaru before he could speak any further.

"So Rin, what should I wear to your party?" She seemed unfazed by what he had just said Sesshomaru realized and that was a problem.

"Kagome, I need to tell you something."

"And what would that be?" She wondered if Sesshomaru didn't want her to get a specific gift for Rin or something of that nature.

"My mother and my step-mother will be in attendance at the party. And my mother can be a little overbearing." Kagome relaxed into his hold and gave him a kiss to show that she wasn't worried.

"It's fine Sesshomaru. I can handle her. I mean come on, she isn't anything like Viola from _Monster in Law _I bet." Sesshomaru grimaced and Kagome noticed it.

"She's that bad?" He was debating on what to tell her when Rin interrupted.

"Don't worry Kagome. Grandma Asumi will like you! I told her lots of stories about you and she said that she really wants to meet you! I'm sure that she'll like you!"

"Well I'm sure that she does Rin." Kagome announced squatting down to look Rin in the eye. But she wasn't sure- this was the first time Sesshomaru had mentioned his mother and she was indecisive about who to believe- Rin or Sesshomaru.

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**So there it is.**

**Thanks for reading and please review!  
Kaoruhana ^_^  
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	26. Asumi Sekihara

**Hi there everyone! Thanks a lot for your reviews. Now here is the next snippet: Asumi Sekihara.**

**Enjoy!**

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I stared in shock at the woman who was standing by Rin and undoubtedly was Sesshomaru's mother. She held the same regal air of authority that he did and had the same set of facial features that defined Sesshomaru's rather elite lineage.

"Sesshomaru!" I pulled his hand frantically grabbing his attention. "You never told me she was your mother!" He turned to me and raised an eyebrow.

"What is wrong with my mother?" I was uneasy and I was angry at him for failing to mention to me who his mother was.

"Your mother is Asumi Sekihara, the ex-editor of Vogue magazine in Japan. What in the world will she think of me?" I panicked. If I had known who his mother was before I would have made more of an effort in my choice of clothing. The classy sundress I had picked was pink, knee-length, sleeveless, and flowed beautifully around my legs. Sesshomaru had assured me that it was okay but I wasn't sure of it now.

"Nonsense, she may be critical but she won't mind clothing." He assured me as he led me toward her. It was more of him dragging me as I wanted to disappear. Finally, we reached her and she smiled in greeting. I straightened myself remembering what Jakotsu had taught me about fashion divas.

"Hello Sesshomaru." She gave him a kiss on the cheek and then turned her attentions to me. "Who is this lovely lady?" I blushed prettily as I was introduced and acknowledged her.

"This is my girlfriend mother. Her name is Kagome."

"Kagome? Well it's nice to meet you." I relaxed slightly as she moved forward and gave me two French kisses on each cheek.

"It's nice to meet you Ms. Sekihara." I confessed returning her kisses as well. Before I could protest, she had linked her arms with mine and convinced Sesshomaru to let her take a walk with me. She soon led me away towards the front yard before the party started.

"So Kagome," she began as soon as we were out of Sesshomaru's range of hearing, "how did you meet my son?" I blanched as I thought of how to word our awkward first meeting.

"I met him as I was hiding from someone."

"Hiding?" I decided I had no choice but to elaborate.

"My friends thought it would be nice if I got into a relationship so they set me up with this guy. He was a bit too forward because by the end of the first date he had already declared his intentions to marry me." We were not even halfway across the majestic Taisho lawn and I wished, not for the first time, that the grand Taisho manor had a smaller front yard. "As I was escaping him I ran into Sesshomaru and Rin and they hid me." I knew that Ms. Sekihara hadn't heard my last few words when she spoke.

"So you don't like the idea of marriage?" I suddenly also had a feeling that Sesshomaru's mother was going to twist every single word that came out of my mouth.

"I think you need to be in a serious relationship before you begin to even think of marriage."

"And are you in a serious relationship with Sesshomaru?"

"Yes."

"So you would consider marriage with him?" I blushed and I was not so sure what to answer. Finally, I decided to say what I thought might happen.

"We might in the future but I'm not sure." At this point, we stopped walking and his mother looked me straight in the face.

"Tell me now Kagome, how much money do you want?"

"What?" This was not at all what I was expecting her to say.

"I asked how much money do you want? He probably already bought that dress along with a few other gifts for you, how much more do you want?" I should have been prepared for what she had said but I wasn't. Instead I was shocked and angry especially considering that I had bought this dress with my own hard earned money.

"Listen Ms. Sekihara. Since you are the mother of my boyfriend I have no choice but to be somewhat cordial to you. But I can tell you this. I will show you respect but don't expect to hear any kind words from me until I hear them from you." With that said I left and made my way back towards the party. I passed Sesshomaru along the way and when he asked me what was wrong, I told him to ask his mother. I was done with her as far as I was concerned.

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**Kaoruhana ^_^  
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	27. Break

**Sorry I couldn't update yesterday, I was really busy catching up with family. Anyway, here is the next snippet: Break**

Rin was flaunting off her gifts to Kagome as the two sat in Sesshomaru's living room. She had gotten several tasteful gifts from her grandparents and Kagome now felt that her gift was mediocre. She had gotten the girl earrings and after much convincing on her part to Sesshomaru, had taken Rin to get her ears pierced today. Speaking of Sesshomaru she hadn't seen him after the party- it seemed that all his interactions with her had been via phone and today was the first time she would see him in a week.

"Rin," his voice came from the doorway and Kagome turned to see him, "how are you?" He had purposefully ignored Kagome and she was positively fuming right now. He seemed to have ignored her all week and she had had enough of his attitude.

"Sesshomaru," she announced authoritatively, "we need to talk." Sesshomaru opened the front door clearly indicating that they would have their conversation outside. As soon as the door closed she rounded on him.

"What the hell is wrong with you?"

"What the hell is wrong with me?" Sesshomaru countered irritated. The woman had not apologized to his mother all week and she was asking him what was wrong? "You're the one that refuses to apologize to my mother after yelling at her during Rin's party!"

"Me apologize!" Kagome said appalled. She could not believe that Sesshomaru hadn't approached her about it before. "She called me a gold-digging whore Sesshomaru!" Sesshomaru would have none of that. His mother may have been cruel to his past girlfriends but she had never gone that far and he refused to believe she would even do that.

"It's Taisho to you Higurashi." He stated snarling in her face.

"Really?" Kagome decided that this was enough to last her and hastily spoke, not caring if she would regret her actions later. If this first fight was going to be their last, then so be it. "Well then Taisho, we're done and you can tell your daughter that she won't ever see me again. I'll miss her but I sure as hell will not miss you."

Kagome spun on her heel and walked to her car, slamming the door in the process. Sesshomaru watched her walk to her car and drive away his heart feeling a guilty. But it was good riddance. After all, his mother never lied right?

Kagome didn't drive home, instead she made her way to Jakotsu's apartment, sure that he would invite Sango soon and a good chocolate and ice-cream binge session would ensue soon after. Seeing his apartment building Kagome parked her car. She walked up the stairs and when Jakotsu opened the door fell into him crying.

"Kags? What's wrong?" Behind him, he could hear Bankotsu make room on the sofa and he slowly let her sit down. He had no idea what had caused the sudden breakdown but was willing to be there to listen.

"We broke up." The three words were enough to make Jakotsu understand and he held her to his side letting her cry out her feelings.

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Thanks for reading and please review!  
Kaoruhana ^_^


	28. The truth

**Here it is :) **

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"Rin dear, why are you crying?"

"Daddy says Kagome's never coming back." Rin began to cry harder and Asumi was at a loss of what to do. Why was Rin so upset with the girl if she had only been using Sesshomaru's money?

"Why is that a problem Rin?" The little girl looked up at Asumi through her tears and hastily began her explanation with a sob or two intermixed.

"Kagome loves me, she said so. And if she leaves, then that means I will never have a mommy or someone who loves me as much as she does. And I was so sure that we were going to be a family. But Daddy doesn't love Kagome and so she left." Asumi held the crying girl wondering what to do with things now. Finally, she moved to her last card.

"But Rin, don't you like just having your Daddy around?"

"No!" Rin yelled startling the person who had come to stand in the doorway. He was shocked by his daughter's outburst. "I wanted a family for my birthday! But daddy doesn't care. He yelled at Kagome and said she lied and he made her cry. He took my wish away from me." Rin pulled away from her grandmother and noticed Sesshomaru in the doorway. She didn't even bother to say hello to him as she fled from the room to go cry alone in her bed. If only Kagome was there everything would be better.

Sesshomaru was hurt. He had been feeling guilty every night the past wee and hardly got any sleep as a result. The workdays were less than productive too, and the first words he heard when he came home were rather unsettling. The fact that Rin hadn't even managed to say hello to him for the past few days- something she had never done before- was making him regret everything he had done.

"Sesshomaru?" He looked at his mother who was obviously worried for him as well. "You look tired- do you want to go sleep? I can make dinner." He shook his head in a no and walked to the sofa collapsing on it next to his mother. The words Kagome had said kept echoing in his mind and he wondered if she had been telling the truth.

Asumi on her part felt more than saw the extent of the relationship her son's family had with Kagome Higurashi. She had only disappeared from their lives for a short while and the effect on them was rather frightening. A normal cheerful house had dulled into one without any joy. She wondered now if lying to her son was indeed the best thing to do.

"Mother?" Sesshomaru's voice caused her to look at him. "What exactly did you say to Kagome?" Asumi paled. She should have expected this but to tell Sesshomaru now that she lied to him was hard. However, she knew what she had to do. It was her duty as a mother to ensure that her son was happy with whatever he chose in life and it was obvious that Kagome Higurashi had managed to make his world shine. So as a mother, she would support him in that.

"I accused her of being something she wasn't." Asumi stated waiting for her son's answer.

"I see. Did you happen to call her a gold-digging whore?" Sesshomaru's voice had taken on an icy edge and he was suddenly very angry with himself. No wonder Kagome had left yesterday. Asumi on her part wondered what to do. She finally decided that her son's anger at her was worth the future happiness he would receive.

"I might have implied that." She calmly waited her son's response, knowing that she would probably tear up when she heard him. Soon enough, Sesshomaru pointed to the door.

"Mother or not, I can't forgive you for your actions." He stated his voice taking on a hard edge that made Asumi wince. "So I'd like to ask you to leave before I lose whatever control I have." Asumi didn't need to be told twice but she made sure that Sesshomaru heard what she had to say as she left.

"You may not forgive me Sesshomaru, but I can only hope you appreciate as I try to fix what I did."

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**See Asumi's not all bad! Thanks for reading and please review!  
Kaoruhana ^_^**


	29. Respect

**Hello! I'm sorry that this story is having shorter chapters recently. I just don't like drawing out drama. Anyway, here is the next snippet: Respect**

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I cleared the counter as I finished work on a new bouquet. I had already taken nearly a week off and reopened the shop today after a good crying session. However, the week had been fruitful. I had decided that I at least knew where Sesshomaru was coming from though he would have to do some major groveling to make me forgive him. The door chime's ringing prompted me to look up and I stared in shock as Asumi Sekihara walked in. What did she want now?

"Kagome." She acknowledged me with a nod and I nodded as I acknowledged her.

"We need to talk and I need to apologize." Did she just say what I thought she said, I wondered. The tense silence that followed was enough for me to realize that what Asumi did was something amazing. She had been willing to swallow her pride and apologize to me. I suddenly felt a little respect for her.

While she had still done something I found harsh, I understood that I couldn't have a stable relationship with Sesshomaru unless I was in an amicable relationship with his mother. To me, it felt as though he was constantly trying to win the favor of her because his trust in her ran deep. And it was not just trust, I felt there was a sense of honor involved. As much as he would follow his own path in life, he would never follow a path that would make him lose sight of the approval of his family. I realized that I hadn't answered Asumi who stood awkwardly in my shop wearing her designer heels and dress.

"Thank you." I answered as I smoothed my skirt free of any wrinkles. "Do you want to talk? I can set some tea in the back room?" Asumi seemed to hesitate before nodding.

We had a long talk and I learned a lot more about Asumi. She came from an aristocratic family that had married her off to the first good business associate that they found- Inutaisho. The marriage had been rocky but the two had tried to stick it out and Sesshomaru was born. They were able to relax around Sesshomaru but they ended up as only amicable friends. When Sesshomaru was only a year old, the two parted on friendly terms and she had begun to pursue her fashion career two years later.

She was an independent woman and I was interested in that. After a while conversation slipped into the way I ran my store. Soon enough, Asumi was giving me tips and I found that I didn't mind them at all. She had worked her way to the topmost position in the Japanese fashion industry and I knew that whatever advice she was giving me had to be important.

The door chime rang again and I excused myself as I went to see my customer. After they left, I ended up having lunch with Asumi and she eventually left. After she did, I couldn't help but let a smile fall onto my face. While there would be some bad blood between us I was glad we had come to an understanding. Maybe things would get better for me.

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	30. Forgive

Hi! I hope you like this chapter and I have to say someting about this. First, I think this story will only have about 10 or so more chapters left. Second, I think this has been one of my favorite snippets to write.

**Here it is: Forgive**

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Sesshomaru was tired of things. He had tried, rather unsuccessfully, to beg Kagome for forgiveness. She had refused and he was frankly getting tired of things, there was only so much he could do. He had made sure she got chocolates and roses every day. He personally apologized- every day at lunch- and he had even, in a display of total and complete trust, given her the keys to his house and added her as a guardian on Rin's school records. Sesshomaru was now frankly at a loss of what to do. He had done everything his mind could think of, and he now admitted he would resort to anything to have her forgive him.

To top things off, Rin refused to talk to him still. It had been nearly two weeks since he had been attempting to win back Kagome's favor and Rin it seemed was only ready to forgive him if he told her he was with Kagome again. He downed the glass of scotch in his hand, his fourth so far, and looked around the bar. He knew he had to stop and go home to Rin eventually but what was he to do when everyone he knew hated him even if he was doing something right.

"Sesshomaru?" He turned his head to see Souta. Great, this was the last thing he needed- an angry brother on his hands. "What are you doing here?"

Souta took a seat across from Sesshomaru wondering what had happened. Kagome had told her family that they had gotten into a nasty fight and broken up and she was just waiting to forgive him. He was sure she already had considering the entire thing happened three weeks ago. He knew his sister was one to hold grudges but this was too much.

"Let's get you home." Souta began trying to remove Sesshomaru from the bar. However, the man refused and the look of despair on his face made Souta recoil. Sesshomaru was quite strong-willed and to see him give up this way was shocking.

"I can't go home when my own daughter hates me." Rin, Souta realized had taken the effects of this break-up hard. He wondered if Kagome knew what was going on but he supposed she didn't. He sighed then urged Sesshomaru to his car.

"Fine, I'm guessing Rin is with someone?"

"Mother." Sesshomaru's words were taking on a drunken slur and Souta was glad that he was an emotional drunk. Some of his friends tended to be angry drunks and while he could handle them, he doubted he could handle an angry Sesshomaru. Once both of them were safe in the car, he drove them to his small apartment nearby.

Sesshomaru was hard to convince but eventually the man was willing to go and change into his clothes once they got into the apartment. He set up a blanket and pillow on the sofa, before leading Sesshomaru there. Then he gave him a glass of water and after a half-hour watched as his sister's ex fell asleep.

Finally, Souta stepped into his bedroom and called his sister.

"Hello?"

"I can't believe you Kagome. You really need to rethink your actions."

"Souta?" The voice on the other end sounded confused. "What are you talking about?"

"I found Sesshomaru, yes your Sesshomaru, drunk at a bar and I brought him home." He waited for a reply. After a minute, he thought she didn't even seem fazed about it and was about to yell again when she spoke.

"Why wasn't he with Rin?" Kagome was furious. Sesshomaru was supposed to be a responsible adult and he was out drinking. But she knew he only did things for a reason and she wanted to get her facts straight.

"I don't know, perhaps the fact that he told me his daughter hates him has something to do with it?" Souta scoffed. He then took a deep breath and decided to calm down.

"Look Kagome, even though you're angry you can't hold your grudge forever. I've done some stupid things to Hitomi but she forgives me easily enough when I come round to it. A relationship is a compromise and I'm afraid that your's isn't. Tell me, what's so wrong that you can't forgive him?" All he heard in response was a dial-tone.

Kagome hung up as soon as she heard her brother's words. Was she really being harsh and unfair? She supposed she was. Sesshomaru had made one mistake, granted it was kind of big, but he had done nothing short of try to make it up to her. And she hadn't forgiven her. Her brother had told her relationships were a compromise and now that she thought about it, Sesshomaru had done so much for her- cook her dinner, try to change, romance her- but she had been so unfair to him.

She called the Taisho-residence and the phone was answered by Asumi. After asking a few questions, she got her answers and begged to speak to Rin.

"Rin?" She began when the other girl spoke on the line. "Why are you so mean to your father?" Before the girl could answer she began speaking again. "Don't you realize that your father loves you and that he's been hurting?" Kagome felt tears escape her eyes as she finished her speech.

"I forgive him Rin, I do. Just please, talk to him again." She hung up and then looked at her bed. Suddenly, everything felt so empty and she sobbed as she realized that she carried things too far. Now all she had to do was tell Sesshomaru she loved him, and she planned to tell him that tomorrow. It was time to forgive and forget

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**So what do you think? Thanks for reading and please review!  
Kaoruhana ^_^**


	31. Making up

**Thanks for all the reviews! They make me so happy! I hope you like this snippet!  
Here it is: Making up**

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Sesshomaru woke up with a headache, it wasn't a large headache just enough to form a constant irritation in the back of his mind. Where was he again? He sat up, a bit too fast, since the world was spinning, and he took a deep calm breath as he adjusted. Bit by bit memories began to return - him drinking at the bar and Souta bringing him home. He stood up, and turned, startled when he met Kagome.

Kagome bit her lip as she pondered on what to say. There was a lot of damage and she needed to slowly fix it. But how was she supposed to fix that? She pointed down a hall.

"You can freshen up there. After that you can eat breakfast. I'll make omelets." He merely walked away doing as instructed. When he entered the bathroom, Sesshomaru had a good look at his face. His eyes were sunken and his usually straight hair was matted and messy. Straightening his appearance, Sesshomaru walked back to the kitchen.

"Souta's out and I figured we could talk over breakfast." He nodded and took a seat at the table. He was willing to hear her out because he had no idea what more he could say.

"I'm sorry." Sesshomaru stopped and put the fork in his hands down. She was sorry? "I tend to let my anger get the best of me and I don't realize what I'm doing until someone stops me. I love you Sesshomaru." His breath hitched when he heard the two words he'd wanted to hear for ages. Was it true? Kagome then smiled at him and hastily wiped the tears from her eyes. "I forgive you."

Sesshomaru couldn't believe it. In his elation, he kissed her hard and soon both were caught up in the passionate kiss. They broke away only to have Sesshomaru start placing butterfly kisses on her neck.

"Not here." Kagome gasped as she regained some senses from his kiss and realized what he wanted.

"Then where?" Sesshomaru growled out growing impatient. He planned to show Kagome just how much she meant to him and he didn't want to stop now.

"Just wait a few minutes. We'll go to my place."

Three hours later a very happy Sesshomaru and Kagome lay next to each other on her bed. He lightly brushed away locks from her face and bent down to whisper in her ear.

"I love you Kagome." Kissing her cheek he leaned up on his elbows looking down at the ebony haired woman in front of him.

"Love you too." Kagome mumbled too tired to want to do anything other than sleep. She tugged her boyfriend's arm and he smiled amused at her antics before settling down by her.

"I was thinking of spending the weekend together." He confessed. After their last session he had come to that conclusion and he was waiting for Kagome to okay the plans.

"Whatever." Kagome snuggled closer to him much to his delight. "Tired, sleep, talk later."

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**Thanks for reading and please review!  
Kaoruhana ^_^**


	32. MiniVacation

**Hi there, sorry about not updating. It seems that my entire family has decided to pay me visits at the end of my trip. As it is, I'm suddenly remembering some last minute shopping as well. Anyway here it is: Mini-Vacation**

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Kagome walked out of her room after a much needed shower to see Sesshomaru still reading something on her laptop and sipping his coffee. She had made him that coffee nearly forty minutes ago.

"You're still drinking that coffee?" She asked just to make sure she was seeing things properly. He turned to her, an eyebrow raised, before lifting the mug to his lips again.

"Not anymore." She huffed at his attitude before taking a seat next to him on the sofa. They had decided to spend not just a weekend but five days together without any other company. It was day one today. Sesshomaru had already called his mother to take care of Rin, after making her promise that the first sign of Rin missing him would be immediately acted upon. Kagome in the meantime had managed to get Souta to bring Sesshomaru some clothes and various toiletries that the man would most likely need.

Sesshomaru languidly stretched as he shut down the laptop and noticed Kagome off in her own thoughts. He snapped her out of it by waving a hand in her face.

"I'm going to take a shower now. Are you sure you don't want to join me?" he teased, narrowly missing the pillow she sent throwing his way.

"I'll be making lunch!"

Twenty minutes later found her peering through her freezer for the item that she was sure she had purchased when grocery shopping last week. Sesshomaru was bemused at the sight in front of him and couldn't help but wonder if he'd be on the receiving end of more sights such as that before the end of their mini-vacation. He watched as Kagome emerged, box in hand, and turned to see him.

"Hello, did you have a nice shower?"

"I did." He reached over and plucked the box from her hands. "A Margarita Pizza?"

"Yes, you do like that right?" Kagome found his question unnerving. She was sure that her kitchen had nothing save for a sparse few vegetables since she had missed her weekly grocery date yesterday. If Sesshomaru wanted something, well he was going to have to unfortunately wait for it, or order takeout.

"I like it." He assured reading the look on Kagome's face. "But is that all you have?" Kagome sheepishly nodded yes and he brought her in a one-armed hug. "That's fine; we'll just go shopping later."

They did go shopping later and by the time they arrived home Kagome couldn't help but reflect on how much they acted like a couple who was living together. They both picked the things they wanted and needed and occasionally would ask the other "do you like this?" as they threw items into the cart. They ended up putting the groceries away too and when done, Sesshomaru picked her up and carried her to the sofa.

"What are we doing?" she asked confusion evident in her features.

"Watch T.V." She laughed at his quick reply and took the remote flipping through the channels before squealing and putting the remote down.

"The Karate Kid?" Sesshomaru asked as the original version with Mr. Myagi flashed on screen. He had loved that movie as a kid and he couldn't count the number of times he'd seen it. He had the soundtrack, the movie-on both VHS and DVD, and was sure that he had posters of it tucked away in his basement somewhere.

"What are you thinking about?" The question caught him off guard and he glanced down at Kagome.

"I used to love this movie when I was little." Looking back at this movie he couldn't help but remember his own sensei- Totosai. He had passed shortly before Rin's birth and it had been a devastating loss for him. Totosai had been there to help him grow from a kid with a confused concept of family into a man who had honor and respect. He wondered what his sensei would think of him now.

Kagome noticed he was lost in his thoughts and decided to leave him be. If it was important, she was sure he would tell her about it later.

Two hours later, the movie finished and Kagome sighed as she stretched. It wasn't hard to see why this had been one of Sesshomaru's favorite movies when he was little; it seemed to have everything that he appreciated- love, honor, and respect. She ran her fingers over his arm and he caught her fingers before she could repeat her action a second time.

"What do you want for dinner?" She managed to come up into a half-sitting position and huffed deciding that some was better than nothing.

"Pasta?" She thought about what they had bought earlier- spaghetti. And she had dumped in a jar of tomato sauce as well. It wasn't a bad dinner and so she nodded her head in a yes.

The five days passed by fast and it was now the last day. Tomorrow was a Wednesday and Sesshomaru was expected at work bright and early. He sighed as he played with some of Kagome's hair on her bed.

"What's wrong?" She asked him turning so that she could see him better. "You've been sighing on and off for the past hour." A quick glance at the alarm clock confirmed her statement.

"I don't want to leave." Sesshomaru knew he had to work but work meant spending time away from Kagome and not being able to see her on a daily basis. The last five days had given him a preview of what life could be like with her around and he loved it. It was nice to have a warm body next to his when he woke up, to have someone like Kagome around. He was greedy, but he wanted Kagome forever and the thought of leaving tomorrow plagued his mind.

"I don't want you to leave either." Kagome admitted with a smile. "I kind of liked living with you." She paused as she wondered how to word out the thoughts in her head. "In fact, I kind of don't want to come home if you're not there." She blushed and then internally berated herself for her choice of words.

"I mean, I really like having someone around you know? And it's nice to be held when I go to sleep and-" She was cut off as Sesshomaru kissed her deeply. When they broke apart he made sure she was looking straight at him and then asked the question that had been twirling around in his mind all day.

"Do you want to move in with me and Rin?"

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**Thanks for reading and please review! Can we see if I get to 500 before this story ends?  
Kaoruhana ^_^**


	33. Decisions

**First I have to say, thank you for letting this story cross the 50,000 hit mark. That makes me happy :) And the reviews, story alerts, and favorites keep adding to that happiness! Thanks a lot to everyone! Here is the next chatper: Decisions **

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I bit my lip as I talked to Sango during my lunch break on the phone. I had just finished telling her how the last five days had been with Sesshomaru and about the question he asked me last night.

"Well what did you say?"

"I told him I had to think about it." I heard Sango gasp in disbelief on the other end and could picture her face in my mind.

"Why did you tell him that? That's basically snubbing him off." I sighed as I looked to the door to see if Sesshomaru and Rin had returned. They had not. The issue hadn't completely left my mind; I had been thinking on it for a long time and had a mental pro-con list going.

"Well what was I supposed to do Sango? I mean this is a big decision; I can't just make it on a whim. And then there's the fact that Rin needs to be a part of it too." There was a pause as Sango considered my reply.

"Where is Rin?" She finally asked.

"With Sesshomaru brining us food."

"And have either of you told her about this yet?" I twirled a lock of hair around my finger.

"He was going to mention it to her when they brought food."

"And so he is supposed to tell her that now?" I nodded my head before realizing I was speaking on the phone.

"Yes, look Sango; I see them outside the store window, so I'm hanging up now okay?"

"All right girl. Let me know what happens."

"Will do." She hung up and I sighed as the door chimed signaling the arrival of the two people whose life had merged with mine. Rin skipped over to me and did not hesitate in asking me about what her father had undoubtedly told her.

"Daddy told me you can live with us. Will you?" Her little eyes were so curious and I knew I had to answer right now.

"Would you like that Rin?" She nodded and then looked at her father.

"Is it okay with Daddy?"

"Yes." Sesshomaru's response was curt and now I paled as the attention was entirely thrust onto me. Was I ready to do move in or not? I had been debating the options all along and the pros outweighed the cons in my mental checklist. Sighing, I managed to speak, my voice coming out in a whisper.

"I'd love to."

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Sesshomaru sighed as he heard Kagome's answer. He wanted to prove to Kagome that this relationship was going to a more serious level. If all things went well, he didn't mind marrying Kagome either. She was everything he needed in his life: someone to love, someone who loved Rin, and someone who was willing to go the extra mile with him. Now, he just had to wait and see if things would work out for the better.

The following weekend Kagome moved in. She gave-up most of her furniture to Souta, but kept a bookshelf or two and various lamps which were most likely going to end up in Sesshomaru's basement anyway. Over the course of a Saturday Sesshomaru's bedroom had slowly transformed into their bedroom and his basement had begun to accommodate some of her things.

When he entered his bedroom later that afternoon, it took him a while to adjust to the way it looked. However, he didn't mind it since the room hadn't changed much. There was a bookshelf next to his old one filled with Kagome's things. He noticed a bottle of her perfume next to his on the dresser and a few pictures of her family littered her bedside table. There were a few touches here and there that announced her presence but those were it. She had truly transformed it into their room.

His eyes spotted her on the bed clearly tired from the long day. She was asleep right now and Rin had ended up dozing off next to her. Smiling, he slowly closed the door and made his way downstairs to make dinner knowing the two would be quite hungry when they woke up.

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**There you have it. I've mentioned this before, but yes this story will be coming to an end soon. Anyway, thanks for reading and please review.  
Kaoruhana ^_^**


	34. Halloween

**Hi there. So a warning, there is a time-skip here in this chapter, but as I said before it's all because of the story ending. Anyway, thanks again for making this story such a success everyone! Here is the next snippet: Halloween**

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I hauled down the box of decorations and set it down in front of Rin. It was Halloween and since Rin told me it was one of her father's favorite holidays I wanted to decorate the house. I had closed the shop today and spent the entire day baking Halloween themed treats. Cookies were made to decorate, the candy stocks were full, and now all that was left was decorating the house.

Rin's school was going to let out soon so I grabbed the keys and went to pick her up. Ever since she had started school again, about two months ago, I was the one to pick her up from school. In two and a half months Sesshomaru's home had become my home albeit a few difficulties from time to time. The kitchen, bathroom, and T.V. were prime areas where these difficulties occurred as we all competed for the chance to use them but we had eventually begun to work out a routine.

Sesshomaru always used the master bathroom first in the morning, and then I did. In the meantime, I would be in the kitchen and fix everyone breakfast. The T.V. schedule was fit so that all of us managed to watch our favorite shows at the times we wanted.

"Hey Rin." The little girl bounced into the car as I arrived at her school. "How was your day?"

"Lots of fun!" She was now in second grade. "We made jack-o lanterns out of construction paper!"

"That's nice. We can put it up on the fridge when we get home."

"Yay!"

We arrived home about fifteen minutes later and I managed to somehow urge the girl to wash up and change into a different set of clothes. While she did that I got the icing mixed. I had chosen five colors- red, orange (which took me a long time to find), white, green, and black. By the time I was done, Rin was ready and squealed seeing the kitchen.

"Are these cookies?"

"Yep! And we can decorate them. But first, how about we got some food in your tummy?" I had learned over the time I had been living here that Rin loved apples. As long as you mentioned the fruit around her she would hunt high and low for said apple.

"Apples?" she asked hopefully. I nodded as I reached for her plate and handed her the snack.

"What do you think we should make for dinner?"

"I don't know. Daddy likes anything you make- you can cook." I winced at the harsh way she threw her words around. We needed to work on telling her how to tone things down a bit.

"All right. I'm not in a cooking mood because we have-" I looked at the clock which read 3:30. In approximately two hours the first batch of trick-or-treating kids would be arriving. "two hours, so I think I'll be lazy and make pizza."

Once Rin was done with her snack, we both opened the box of decorations I had lugged out. There was a fake plug-in jack o lantern and I immediately put it aside. There was also a lawn decoration- what looked like a tiny stand-up on its own Dracula. I decided I was going to put that somewhere a little hidden- I didn't want to scare little kids into running away. There were a few others we decided to use here and there and I went about setting them up- with Rin's help of course.

It was around four-thirty when we finished. Rin decided how to decorate the cookies and I helped her- it took the better part of a half-hour to do it. We rushed to get into our costumes.

I was a gypsy, a costume picked out by Rin herself after her brief _Hunchback of Notre Dame_ fascination. Sesshomaru though, was a vampire. I found it unfair that he had a lot more fun with his costume. There was more involved in getting ready. To get ready all I had to do was wear a dress, put on some make-up, play with my hair a bit, and accessorize. He got to play with fake teeth! I made my way to Rin's room deciding to help her get ready before I began with my costume. She was going to be a tiny witch, complete with dress, hat, and make-up attached. It took me twenty minutes to get her ready and then I raced to my room to change.

Sesshomaru was already there when I arrived. He had removed his tie and jacket and was working on removing his shirt.

"You're not ready?" I huffed.

"Well geez, the first thing you say to me is that!" Sesshomaru laughed pulling me close and planting a kiss on my lips.

"Happy Halloween Kagome." He smirked and I noticed the amused glint in his eyes. What in the world was he going to say next? "By the way, those cookies were delicious." I slapped him playfully on the shoulder.

"You weren't supposed to eat them yet!" I wriggled out of his hold. "Now if you excuse me, I need to get ready." I grabbed my dress and make-up supplies disappearing into the bathroom.

When I came back out, Sesshomaru had changed into his costume and was putting in his false fanged teeth. I walked over next to him and grabbed the earrings and bangles on the dresser, slipping them on. I had to say we made a good looking pair.

The doorbell rang and I squeaked, slipping out our door and racing downstairs. I grabbed the bowl Rin and I had filled earlier and pulled open the door to make way for the first trick-or treaters.

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Sesshomaru had taken Rin out trick-or treating an hour and a half ago. He promised they'd be back in two hours tops but I was getting bored. The trick-or-treaters had dwindled in number considering it was nearing eight at night. The doorbell rang again and I hastily opened it to greet the new trick-or treaters only to see Rin and Sesshomaru instead.

"Done?" I asked as the two made their way inside. We had an early dinner before Rin left and I could already see the girl try to beg for candy as a late dessert.

"Yes! It was lots of fun and I got so much candy!" Rin thrust her plastic pumpkin jack-o-lantern at me. "Look!" I noticed that the pumpkin was teeming with candy and was about to overflow. How many places had they visited? Sesshomaru grabbed the lantern and went to the kitchen, Rin following him dutifully to beg for a few.

When they came back to my side twenty minutes later they were both free of costume and make-up. We kept company by the door until it neared nine and Rin was starting to nod off. Halloween had gracefully fallen on a Friday but it was still time for the girl to go to bed. Sesshomaru took her upstairs as I cleaned up the kitchen a bit. He was in our room reading on the bed when I went upstairs to change.

I slipped into bed a few minutes later, costume, accessory, and make-up free.

"Tired?"

"Kind of. You know I kind of wish you left your costume on. You looked sexy."

"Oh did I?" he asked moving to hover over me. "And what makes you think I can't be sexy now?" Laughing slightly, I pulled him closer for a kiss.

"Don't worry, you're sometimes too sexy for your own good."

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**Thanks for reading and please review!  
Kaoruhana ^_^**


	35. Seven hundred and Thirtytwo dollars

**Hi there, I have a feeling this will be a nice read :) Anyway, here is snippet 35: Seven hundred and Thirty-two dollars**

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Sesshomaru didn't know what had compelled him to stand in front of the Jared jewelry store. He was supposed to be out buying Rin her Christmas gifts and instead he found his eyes glued to the poster of the advertisement for an engagement ring. Deciding to take a look he walked inside. Yes, looking wouldn't hurt after all he wasn't sure of what he wanted to do yet.

He walked inside and grimaced at the smile that the lady behind the counter was giving him. She was obviously thinking she had a potential customer and though he was hesitant to be her cusotmer, he wasn't going to deny her that pleasure. For all he knew, he might be walking out of here with a lighter wallet.

"How can I help you today?" The lady began. She was still eager and Sesshomaru decided that the sooner he left her presence the better. He immediately stated the reason he had decided to venture into the store.

"I'd like to see the ring that's on the poster outside." She nodded leading him to a display and pulled out the specific ring that he wanted. It was simple, a gold band with three square cut diamonds set neatly in a row. It wasn't too grand but would add a touch of elegance on anyone who wore it. He immediately knew that it would fit Kagome and that she would love it for its simplicity.

"Would you like to buy it sir?" Sesshomaru examined the ring as he thought. It was the perfect fit for Kagome but he wasn't sure. However, if he bought it now, it would probably be cheaper with all the Christmas discounts going on and he could store it for a later time if he needed. It didn't hurt to buy the ring right? His decision made he decided to note how much of a dent his wallet was going to have.

"Yes. How much is it?" The saleslady read the tag attached to the bottom of the ring box. It was one-and a half carats with a twenty-two carat gold band. After doing some quick calculations, she managed to come to a final price.

"It'll be seven hundred and thirty two dollars sir." He balked at the price before doing some quick calculations of his own inside his head. It wasn't going to be hard to pay it back if he used his one of his credit cards. So with a sigh, he decided to do just that.

The saleslady practically jumped for joy when she saw him pull out his card. She took it quickly and had the ring bagged up in record time telling Sesshomaru that the lucky woman who was receiving it was going to love it. Satisfied with his decision he left to finish his shopping. Now he only had to worry about how to give it to Kagome. What had he gotten himself into?

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**Thanks for reading and please pretty please review! I want to see if I can get 400 reviews ?  
Kaoruhana ^_^**


	36. Christmas

**I have a feeling that a lot of people will love this snippet! Anyway here is snippet 36: Christmas. Enjoy :)**

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It was decided that Kagome, Sesshomaru, and Rin were going to have Christmas dinner with the Taisho family and the Yamada family (Yamada was her mother's maiden name) at the Taisho mansion. Now that was something Kagome feared. While she knew that the Taisho family was usually relegated to spending Christmas within its immediate family only, hers (the Yamada family) was known to celebrate the holiday on a large scale. Her side consisted of four families that only met up at Christmas and other huge family events such as weddings, births, and so on.

Kagome had three uncles on her mother's side and that was all when it came to extended family members. Her father had been an only child and her grandparents on her father's side had long since passed away. Now she had to introduce Sesshomaru to her three doting uncles and her five cousins.

First there was Uncle Akira- the oldest and his wife Aunt Ami. Uncle Akira was the fatherly man and when any of the kids needed a grandfather-like figure that had more knowledge to give them compared to their regular grandfather, it was him that they turned to. Uncle Akira had a daughter Kagura and a son Hojo, Kagura being the older of the two. Kagura was divorced and a single mother of an adorable little girl named Kanna. Hojo was a doctor and was married. The last Kagome remembered his wife had been pregnant. She liked Kagura a lot more than she did Hojo because Kagura was the elder sister that Kagome always looked up to and followed. Hojo, though being Kagome's age, was a timid man who was just too innocent for her liking.

After Uncle Akira came Uncle Hiro and his wife Aunt Miyu. Kagome loved Uncle Hiro simply because he loved spoiling her rotten as a little kid (and all his nieces) and still continued to do so. Uncle Hiro had two daughters Yura and Kikyo. Kagome and Yura got along quite well but Yura was a bit too involved on the make-up front and she and Kagome never saw eye to eye in that. Kagura and Yura however, got along in that aspect wonderfully and if Kagome wasn't careful enough, would perform make-overs on her and Kikyo. Kikyo, the younger of the two, was Kagome's age and the two were always together. Much like Kagura and Yura were an inseparable duo, the younger two girls stuck to each other like glue as well. It had been rocky last Christmas and Kikyo had evaded the obvious drama that would ensue by not attending. This year however since the Taisho's were hosting the dinner, Kikyo was going to be in attendance with her husband Inuyasha.

The last Uncle- the youngest of her mother's three older brothers- was Uncle Kyo. Uncle Kyo was married to Aunt Rumi (Rumiko was her real name but it had been shortened over the years). They had an only son- Kohaku who was studying to be a police officer. He and Souta were around the same age and were close to each other. Uncle Kyo was known for being the funny, boisterous uncle in the family and always managed to bring them together with laughs. Aunt Rumi was the only one who could rein in his sometimes over-boisterous attitude however and the pair loved popping up announced at the Higurashi shrine whenever they could.

It was Christmas today and Kagome was nervous. When it came to the females in the Yamada line, it was known that the men were extremely protective. Kagome didn't even want to think about their reaction to Sesshomaru. Kagura and Yura would quiz him and she only hoped that he would answer correctly to whatever questions they asked.

She held Sesshomaru's hand and looked up to him hoping to hide the inner turmoil in her mind. That seemed to be a fruitless endeavor. He squeezed the hand he was holding and kissed her trying to calm her frazzled nerves. Sesshomaru couldn't understand what had Kagome so nervous. He had a bigger reason to be nervous.

Sesshomaru had decided to get permission to marry Kagome today and that meant he had to fall into the good graces of Kagome's family. He was raised on honor and if that meant asking for Kagome's hand from her family first, he would do it. Squeezing her hand once more he led them into the giant family room where the families had gathered.

The five older men- her uncles, his father, and her grandfather, were engaged in a card game. Inuyasha, Kohaku, Hojo, and Souta were watching a basketball game and had gotten Shippo involved in it as well. The aunts and mothers were all missing- probably in the kitchen Sesshomaru mused- but Rin was playing with a girl her age and four older women were watching them play. One of them was pregnant and the other Sesshomaru recognized as Kikyo. Rin noticed them as she looked up and came to greet them drawing everyone's eyes on the pair.

Kagome sheepishly smiled as she winced at Rin's outburst. It was uncomfortable to be met with so many stares. She squeezed Sesshomaru's hand and introduced him.

"Um everyone, this is my boyfriend Sesshomaru." She felt a little more confident and began the introductions. "Those are my three uncles- Uncle Akira, Uncle Kyo, and Uncle Hiro. The four over there are my cousins Kagura, Yura, Kikyo, and Rika. And those two are my other cousins- Hojo and Kohaku."

Sesshomaru inclined his head to each in turn silently glad that Kagome had already told him of her family dynamics. He already knew everyone's names but he was meeting everyone for the first time today. Kagura immediately grabbed Kagome while her Uncle Kyo dragged Sesshomaru off to see if he could play a good game of poker.

"So, you're Kagome's new man huh?" Kyo chided glad that Kagome had moved on. He, and his two older brothers were now on the lookout for the two girls who had yet to be married and they wondered if this man was a keeper.

"Hush Kyo." Hiro chided before asking a question himself. "He's obviously with her. But is he playing for keeps?" Sesshomaru was awestruck at how the men had managed to draw this conversation topic out before he could even hint at it.

"Yes Sesshomaru," Inutaisho mentioned to his son, "I know she's moved in with you all ready. When are you going to drop the ring?" The older men all let out a laugh as they turned curious eyes to Sesshomaru. He answered all their questions, wondering where his sudden courage had come from.

"I wanted to get your permission before I propose." He answered looking straight at Uncle Akira. The older man could see that the man Kagome had fallen in love with was a good man. It was obvious that he adored his daughter and his niece. And the fact that he had bothered to ask him before he proposed to Kagome brought a flood of emotion into him. His respect was uncommon and Akira nodded in consent.

The rest of the table which had gone silent at Sesshomaru's declaration whooped and gave Sesshomaru their approval as well.

Kagome couldn't help but keep glancing at Sesshomaru from across the room and Kagura had finally decided that she had enough of it. Before Kagome could protest, she had stalked across the room and brought Sesshomaru over to where the women were seated. She had been close enough to hear the men's conversation and knew she needed to have a talk with this man before he proposed. She didn't want Kagome to go through a nasty divorce like she had.

"Kagura!" Kagome admonished as she came over. "What if they were in the middle of an important discussion? You just can't drag him away!" Kagura scoffed, and sat down with Sesshomaru following suit.

"They were done by the time I got there." She glanced quickly in Sesshomaru's direction and spoke. "But I wanted to get to know him too Kagome."

"How long have you been together?" Yura asked understanding the reactions Kagura was giving. She had been the inseparable second part of the duo for years after all.

"Nine months." Sesshomaru replied unfazed by everything. If he was going to be grilled he had no problem. He had the permission he needed and now all he needed was Kagome's answer. No matter what these two women did, he was not going to be thwarted.

"Is there somewhere we can have a private conversation?" Kagura asked shooting a glance at Yura and getting a nod. Sesshomaru stood, leading them to a study nearby as Kagome bit her lip. She just hoped that things were going to go well.

She worried for ten minutes as everyone tried to placate her. Kagura and Yura were viciously protective of family and friends. She had faith in Sesshomaru but she had no idea how far her two cousins were going into the questioning. When they emerged from the hallway she stood and felt an immense sense of relief spread through her as she was greeted with her cousin's smiles.

"He's a keeper girl." Kagura whispered in her ear as Yura giggled.

"Now we have to know details hon." Yura stated, pulling Kagome to sit on a couch in-between them. "How is he in bed?"

"Yura!" Kagome blushed as she noticed Sesshomaru had heard what Yura said. Kikyo smiled good-naturedly along with Rika.

"Well Kagome, I'm pretty sure Sesshomaru wants to know if he satisfies you." Kikyo chided. With a hot blush on her face, Kagome ran away escaping to the kitchen to help the older women with last minute preparations. Ten minutes later, she came out to tell the family room's occupants that dinner was ready.

Dinner had been wonderful, Kagome mused as she slipped into bed beside Sesshomaru. The Taisho mansion was huge- twelve bedrooms- and all of them were full that night. However, the fact that her family had slowly opened up and included the Taisho's in the family affair of Christmas dinner had made her have a happy smile on her face all night. She didn't mind the teasing so much but she did wonder why her Uncles and Sesshomaru kept sharing knowing smiles with each other. Was there something he wasn't telling her?

"Merry Christmas." Sesshomaru stated turning to his girlfriend. He fingered the ring box that he had placed next to her pillow making sure it was covered. Kagome noticed it and after a brief fight managed to pry his fingers away to reveal the box.

He hadn't planned it to be this way but after the initial elation at getting her family's approval he had been tempted to propose. Unfortunately, it wasn't until bed-time that he was allowed to have a private moment with Kagome. Seeing her eyes light up in shock he decided that it was now or never.

Kagome watched as Sesshomaru opened the box and revealed a gorgeous diamond ring. Was he going to propose? He took the ring out of the box and met her gaze as he asked the question that would seal the deal.

"Will you marry me?" She squealed in her excitement and threw her arms around his before quickly pulling away and murmuring yes. He slipped the ring onto her finger and pulled her into deep kisses that lead to more.

The next morning as Kagome helped serve breakfast, Kagura noticed something on her cousin's left hand. Grabbing it before Kagome could protest she spilled out the words.

"They're engaged!"

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**Thanks a lot for reading and please review! As you can tell, it'll only be a few more chapters till the end.  
Kaoruhana ^_^**


	37. Okaasan

**Sorry this is so late and short- I've been busy as usual. The next one will be the second to last snippet and will be longer :)  
Enjoy snippet 37: Okaa-san**

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"So dish girl!" I took a careful look around at all the women who were gathered around me. It was the day before the wedding and I was sitting in Sango's apartment with a group of guests. The guests included Sango, Hitomi-Souta's girlfriend, Kikyo, Kagura, Yura, my mother, Izayoi, and Asumi. I blinked at Sango and she urged me again to answer her question.

"Dish about what?" I asked agitated. The same question had been shot at me at least fifty times tonight and I was frustrated from answering with the same answer.

"How did he propose?" Kikyo pointed at me and I tried desperately to control my anger. I was tired of the question and answer game that had taken over the pre-wedding party and I stood up not caring for what anyone said as I disappeared into Sango's bedroom. Moments later I heard a knock and I chose to ignore it. However the person on the other side didn't go away and I finally yelled out for them to come in. It looked like I was never going to get any sanity.

No one seemed to understand that I was nervous. It was my wedding day tomorrow and I wanted everything to be perfect. Starting tomorrow I would be Mrs. Kagome Taisho and I had to don that role. Life as a married woman meant that some things were going to change. Sesshomaru and I had talked about it but things were always harder in practice. Feeling a touch on my shoulder, I turned to see Asumi.

"Tired of the questions?" I answered her with a nod wondering how she knew.

"The three of us-Izayoi, your mother, and I realized you were getting tired. Your mother wanted to come but I beat her to it." I couldn't help but smile at my mother-in law's playful words and was glad that she was trying to alleviate me from my anger.

"I'm just nervous." I admitted leaning my head against her shoulder. "I'm really excited and happy about marrying him but at the same time I'm kind of nervous when I think of life after marriage. We've talked about it but it's entirely different when put in theory you know?"

"Darling," Asumi patted my hand as she spoke, "I've been in your position and I know how it feels. There will be problems but a marriage is a union that is like a partnership and you two will have to work through them together." She didn't say anything more as she held me and I felt as if a weight was lifted off my shoulders. Amazing how a few words could do that.

"Thank you Asumi." I stated after a while standing up and making my way to the door.

"I'm not Asumi Kagome." I looked back at her and was taken aback by the smile on her face. What in the world did she mean. "If you mother can be Mama to both you and Sesshomaru, then can't I be an okaa-san to you?"

"Hai, okaa-san."

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**Thanks for reading and please review!  
Kaoruhana ^_^**


	38. Honeymoon in Hyderabad

**First, I'm sorry about not updating last night- I uploaded the document but forgot to add it to the story. I'm so sorry!**

Second- this snippet is special to me. It takes place in the city I'm currently in (aka my hometown), a city I consider to be the best in India- Hyderabad. I reference a few places in Hyderabad here. If you want more information on them you can check out my profile :)

Here it is: Honeymoon in Hyderabad

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Sesshomaru engulfed Kagome in his arms as they lay in a blissful afterglow on their honeymoon night. He loved this woman, he was sure of that, but as she lay in his arms and smiled up at him he wondered how lucky he was.

Kagome smiled as she hooked her arms around Sesshomaru's neck and brought him down so that she could relax for a while in the aftermath of their lovemaking. As she relaxed she couldn't help but think back on the wedding.

The wedding had taken two months to plan- Kagome hadn't wanted to prolong the engagement and neither did Sesshomaru. It had been simple- she wearing a gorgeous wedding kimono that had been in her family for generations and Sesshomaru wearing a simple hakama that had been a family heirloom.

It had been a nice Shinto wedding ceremony where they exchanged their san-san-kudo. Kagome had always been a little traditional- when it came to things involving her family shrine- and Sesshomaru was more than happy to acquiesce to her requests. It had taken place at the shrine with all her family and some close family friends as guests.

They had a reception that had immediately followed the wedding and lasted well into the night. Since the wedding took place in the mid-afternoon it was still sunny and they had the san-san-kudo ceremony outside. However, it was still February, and so they had shifted the reception to an old hall that was on the shrine grounds. Without a large number of guests, it had been the perfect place to host the wedding reception.

After the wedding, Sesshomaru and Kagome had spent the night with Rin, before going to honeymoon in the destination that Rin had chosen. Kagome smiled remembering that as Sesshomaru began to trace patterns up and down her back giving her a few shivers.

Sesshomaru and she had been deciding on two choices- Hyderabad, India or Hong Kong. And they had been at a standstill for a while. It was only when Rin intervened and informed them that staying in a castle-like hotel in Hyderabad was for the best that they came to a consensus and agreed on Rin's choice. Hyderabad had history and charm- which they were looking for to keep them busy, but also had modern tastes and romantic getaways for them to enjoy their honeymoon.

"Sesshomaru?" She asked as his lips started moving near her neck and she was sure he was getting ready to begin another round.

"Hmm?" He was far too distracted to care right now and was sure that Kagome would have to remind him of what she said in the morning.

"Let's go see Charminar tomorrow and maybe we can-oh!" His fingers had strayed and Kagome soon found she could care less about what they were going to do tomorrow as he proceeded to consummate their marriage for the second time that night.

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The next morning Sesshomaru and Kagome settled into the car behind their driver as he took them to Charminar. It was a good forty-five minute drive, an hour due to the crazy traffic they were in. Kagome had to say that she preferred the car they were in. While she was no stranger to congested city streets she had never see streets without such a lack of order.

"This is Chermas-" the driver announced, clearly happy about showing them the department store, "you can find very good clothes here. It is in Abids where you can do lots of good shopping." Kagome made sure to keep that fact in the back of her mind as they drove on.

"Look!" She squealed twenty mintues later finding a narrow street from which tons of shoppers were coming and going. "More shopping!" The driver managed to take a peek at where she was and informed her of the shopping to be done there.

"That's Troop bazaar known for electric items Ms. They would do no good for you." Kagome was slightly angry at his quick refusal to shop there but Sesshomaru managed to reason with her. This man obviously knew what he was talking about and it would be best to listen to him.

"Koti," the driver stated as they took a turn that had Kagome scared out of her wits and Sesshomaru lifting an eyebrow in question. The bus turning behind them was a little intimidating.

"Sultan Bazaar is near here." The driver was obviously proud of this fact and Sesshomaru couldn't help but wonder why.

"Sultan Bazaar?" he asked, pronouncing it in a westernized way. The driver quickly corrected him.

"Sool-than Bazaar, sir. It's where you can stroll around and gets lots of shopping done. There's a lot of good clothes at bargain prices." Sesshomaru nodded pleased but it didn't stop Kagome. This could be the last time she was visiting India she mused, so she had to stock up on the souvenirs and clothing.

"Can you buy anything in Charminar?" She asked on the edge of the seat. She had obviously managed to butcher the name since the driver winced slightly.

"Pearls and bangles. There's a lot of good stores." Kagome was a bit puzzled by this. She was sure she had seen nearly a dozen stores as they drove into the Abids area.

"Didn't we pass them before?"

"You'll find better designs here." The driver announced as he pointed up ahead. "But that there is Charminar." Both of them couldn't help but gawk at the sudden change in atmosphere. The area around Charminar suddenly took on an old-city charm and they both spotted many muslim woman clad in burkas along with the regular Hyderabadi. It was simply put stunning and managed to blow out any and all perceptions of India out of their head.

"I can stop here sir and you can look around. When you need me you can find me there." He pointed to a parking area in the middle of the road obviously meant for shoppers like them.

"All right." They both exited the vehicle, drawing stares due to their foreign appearances and proceeded to shop.

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Kagome sighed as she packed. There was no way she and Sesshomaru could fit everything into two suitcases. She had packed the five pearl sets they had bought – for Asumi, her mother, Rin, herself, and Izayoi. She had packed away the few gorgeous dresses she had bought and successfully learned how to wear. Rin's dress was packed away as well. Those all weighed nearly seven kilograms themselves and she groaned. They were allowed thirty kilograms per passenger but her suitcase could only hold around fifteen before it burst. And with her clothes and souvenirs added in it wasn't hard to get to at least twenty-five kilos and break her suitcase at the same time.

"Kagome what's wrong?" Sesshomaru asked looking up from the newspaper he was reading. Apparently it was a good thing they were flying out today. Starting tomorrow a depression in the Bay of Bengal was going to move closer and dump rain- a little late in the season but nonetheless there. It was going to cause unwanted flight delays and he was happy that to fly to Japan they had to take a course that would take them south of the depression altogether.

"Do you have room in your suitcase?" Sesshomaru did, even with the few souvenirs he bought. He, unlike Kagome, hadn't really packed too many clothes for the trip so his luggage was largely underweight. Plus, his suitcase had seen better days than Kagome's and could easily go up to the allotted check-in weight of thirty kilos.

"What would you like to put in here?" He put the newspaper away and walked over to where she was organizing. There were clothes strewn everywhere, and the pearl sets had been put away.

"Can you take these?" She pushed a bag of clothes she had managed to purchase for her cousins and Sango. It was in itself an easy six kilos. "And this." She pushed a box that had a glass figurine- a light up picture of Charminar- to him as well. "I think that should do." He nodded as he placed them away, making sure to nestle the figurine box safely.

Three hours later, they were on their way to the Shamshabad airport. It was nearly ten at night and both were tired but grateful for the reprieve in traffic. At night it seemed impossible to imagine the traffic during daytime. The car they were in took them by Tank Bund and Kagome couldn't help but smile at the giant Buddha statue standing up. She wanted to visit Hyderabad again sometime in the future.

"Let's visit again sometime." She stated as she leaned on his shoulder and twined their hands together.

"Sure."

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**So? The story is nearly done- just an epilogue left!  
Thanks for reading ( I love all you readers!) And please review! (I love all you guys too!)**

**Kaoruhana ^_^**


	39. Epilogue

**Oh my gosh- I can't believe this is the end of the story. It was a ton of fun writing it and I thank each and every reviewer and reader out there. I think the list of that is somewhere in the 100's so I can't name you all but I appreciate all of your support. I'm kind of tearing up as I post this but hey, I have other Sessxkag fics to complete so I should be excited to have time huh?**

**And finally here it is: Snippet 39- Epilogue**

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I stared at the little stick sitting on the bathroom counter- it read positive. I wondered what I was going to say to Sesshomaru. I bit my lip and began pacing the bathroom as I went through scenarios in my mind.

"Kagome," I heard Sesshomaru's yell from the kitchen, "dinner's ready." I panicked, shrieked, and made my way downstairs to my husband of three years. He was now thirty-five and looked so much better than the day I married him- I had a feeling that my love for him grew more every day.

"What is that?" He grabbed my hand before I realized what he was doing and my eyes widened as I saw what was in his hands. I must have grabbed the stick in my panicked rush to get to the kitchen. The expression on his face went from confusion to shock and then he looked at me then back at the stick a few times before I finally snapped.

"Are you done gawking?"

"You're pregnant?" I shyly nodded before quickly adding in a few more words. "But I still want to double-check things you know?" He nodded before engulfing me in a hug, the stick still in his hands, and showered me with praises and kisses. We had been trying for a baby for around a year now and had no luck so far-until today that is.

"Mom?" Rin came floating into the room clutching a book and raised an eyebrow at the position she found us in.

"Hey Rin." I detached myself from Sesshomaru hoping that Rin wouldn't notice what was in Sesshomaru's hands. I had seen her grow into an "older girl" as she never failed to point out to Sesshomaru and I. She also had a mind that she inherited from Sesshomaru- nothing escaped her eyes and at ten years old she was already ahead of her peers in her studies. She walked up to Sesshomaru and tried to pull his arm down but he quickly evaded her and simply walked out of the room.

"What did dad have in his hand?" I feigned surprise and ignored her question.

"Mom, seriously- what did dad have in his hand- he was so happy seeing it." She was cunning and had managed to enter the girly stage of her childhood- soon would come her teenage years and I panicked imaging that.

"We'll tell you later." I had served dinner out to everyone and instructed her to take a seat and wait for her father to join us at the table. Sesshomaru came in and sat down. Rin kept grilling us and we both tried to evade the questions.

"Look Rin, I might be having a baby." I had blurted out the sentence without thinking and then promptly regretted the quick outburst. Sesshomaru was too shocked at my response but Rin latched on.

"When do you find out?" Rin had been excited about the prospect of getting a younger sibling for ages now and she wanted to be the perfect older sister. To get that chance would mean the world to her.

"I'll let you know as soon as I know." I promised her as I kicked Sesshomaru to help me out. He only smirked at me and I could tell what he was thinking: you got yourself into this mess, now get yourself out of it.

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I sighed as I sat in Asumi's living room with my own mother and Asumi as company. We had driven to her Kyoto house to get away for a girls weekend which Rin had been invited on. She had decided to bond with her father however in decorating the nursery while we went away.

"So how have you been?" My mother asked as she watched me stretch my legs.

"Good except for the changes in my body. I can't believe that I have so many mood swings right now- sometimes I feel so guilty for putting Sesshomaru through it."

"He deserves it." Asumi muttered and I turned questioning eyes to her. "When I was pregnant with him- he gave me hell to put it simply. I could hardly keep down anything and was bedridden for most of it. For all the hell he put me through, I think his child can put him through some." She winked at me and I burst out laughing.

Over the years Asumi had shared a fair number of childhood stories about Sesshomaru and I couldn't help but picture him holding a diaper as though it was a bomb.

"You only have three more months Kagome," my mother reassured as she placed a gentle hand on my stomach, "hang in there."

"I will."

When we returned home two days later refreshed and relaxed, I was in for a surprise. I had hardly come home when I was swept up the stairs in Sesshomaru's arms and told to close my eyes. Moments later, I ended up in front of the nursery- what used to be Sesshomaru's office.

"Open your eyes Kagome." I obediently followed his command and gasped. The nursery- which before I left had been a storage room of all the baby furniture- was organized. It was painted a pale green and the ceiling-oh it was perfect. I had wanted to paint the ceiling sky blue and have clouds rolling across and Sesshomaru had done that. How, I wasn't going to ask- I was just happy that he had done what I wanted.

The crib was off to the right side of the room and the changing table was nearby at the adjacent wall. There was a day bed off to the other wall and a rocking chair was near it so that I could sit and relax when feeding. It was perfect, now all that was left was to stock up on baby supplies.

"I love you Sesshomaru!" Nothing else could explain the happiness I felt at that moment as I brought him closer for a kiss. Breaking away I turned to Rin and beckoned her to come over as I gave her a hug. "I love you too Rin. Thank you so much for the room." I bit my lip as I waited to spill the news that I had learned today at the doctor's office. Since I'd had an appointment, Asumi and Mama had gone with me.

"What's wrong mom?" Rin asked noticing my hesitance.

"There's a problem with the room- it's designed for one baby but I'm having twins."

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I held a camera in my hands and snuck up on Sesshomaru with Rin. We had been out shopping and Sesshomaru had been left in charge of our two year old twins Haru and Kaede. He had fallen asleep on the day bed in the nursery with Haru curled into him and Kaede on his chest by the time we got home. It was a priceless sight and made me melt. I had watched as Sesshomaru grew up with our babies and was happy.

He couldn't spend as much time with the kids as I could because of work but he made every effort to play with them when he came home. Yura was managing the shop for me with her husband Takeshi and I was left running after the two toddlers.

Rin snapped the photo and when it came out slightly dark, she took another one this time with flash. It was better but the flash had managed to wake up Sesshomaru. I walked up to him and picked Haru up, while Rin grabbed Kaede- thankfully the kids had slept through the flash.

"Did you guys have a fun trip?" He asked still slightly groggy from sleep.

"We did. How were the kids?" Rin and I placed them in their respective cribs and turned on both baby monitors before we quietly left the room.

"They were good." I noticed how tired he was so I ushered Rin downstairs to get some ingredients out for dinner. I put Sesshomaru in bed and left. The twins would wake up in an hour and Sesshomaru would wake up then as well since he loved giving them attention. By that time I could at least get dinner ready.

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**So? Thanks a lot to everyone out there but as we know all good stories must come to an end and this is the end to this story :)  
Please review- I want to finish the story with reviews? **

**Love :)**  
**Kaoruhana ^_^**


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